TWO men have reportedly been arrested after stripping off and trying to swim in a river.

The pair, thought to be in their 20s, went into the River Ouse at King's Staithe landings in York city centre at around 8pm on Saturday.

Volunteers from York Rescue Boat river patrol were soon at the scene, along with police.

Dave Benson from the rescue boat team said his team had spotted the two men taking their clothes off and saw police officers arrive to warn them against getting into the water.

But after the officers left, the pair jumped in the water and the crew watched from nearby as they swam into deeper and colder water.

The rescue volunteers had been on standby as one appeared to get into difficulties, but both men got themselves safely back to the riverbank, he added.

Mr Benson added: "We got some abuse off the men in the river, and another person, but I put one of our crew members on the bank and he heard a lot of drinkers telling police there were pleased to see us there when they were trying to enjoy an evening out."

He warned other people enjoying the summer weather against getting in the river, which is much more dangerous than it looks.

"We can see from our boat that the water is 20 degrees centigrade - that's still very cold and you couldn't spend much time in there without starting to suffer. Especially when drunk, the cold will sap your energy."