The body of an elderly man was recovered from the river Thames at Kingston yesterday evening.

Police said the death of the man, aged in his 80s, was not being treated as suspicious.

Officers were called to Kingston bridge shortly after 5.30pm yesterday, a Metropolitan Police spokesman said.

Teddington RNLI crew member Tim James was on his boat on the Thames when the emergency message came through and rushed to Kingston Bridge ahead of the lifeboat crew.

He said: "I got there and shielded the person in the water from the public.

"The lifeboat arrived and picked him up and started doing CPR until the ambulance took over. They worked on him for a long while.

"His car had been parked on Kingston Bridge."

Colleague James Kavanagh added: "We administered a couple of rounds of CPR. [Paramedics] were trying to resuscitate him for several minutes."

Formal identification of the body is yet to take place.

Have you been affected by this news?

  • The Mind charity promotes the views and needs of people with mental health problems. Its helpline number is 03001 233 393.
  • To get in touch with the Samaritans in Kingston, call 020 8399 6676 or drop in at 12 St Andrew’s Road, Surbiton, from 7.30am to 9pm. Samaritans lend a confidential ear to those in distress.