A boater and an off-duty nurse fought to save the life of a man who was found unconscious in a Watford canal lock.

A man in his 80s was sadly pronounced dead after the emergency services were called to a canal in Cassiobury Park on Wednesday afternoon.

His death is not being treated as suspicious.

Calvin Morris, who owns a canal boat, told the Observer how he came across the unnamed man in the lock following a trip to Watford.

He said: "I'd been into the town centre and was cycling back and was on a bridge and I saw what I thought was a body floating.

"I cycled round and put the bike down after realising it was a person and ran over."

Mr Morris, who is from London, said he reached over the side of the lock and dragged the man, who was face down, out of the water.

He called 999 and then while on the phone to the handler, he started to administer CPR, before he was joined by an off-duty nurse who rushed to help.

The emergency services had already been called before Mr Morris got onto the phone to them and he says the first police unit arrived quickly, closely followed by a second crew which had a defibrillator, and Mr Morris opened the man's shirt.

Photos taken in the park, away from the canal, show a large number of emergency vehicles, including ambulances, a paramedic car, and an incident response unit.

Mr Morris, who is 45, said: "The emergency services arrived quickly and the paramedics worked on him for a long time and they took him into the ambulance.

"When I saw the man in the water, I just wanted to help and get him out.

"It didn't seem like he had been in the water long."

The boater, who was in the area by chance, says his first aid training kicked in and although the man passed away, he says that training helped provide a "calmness".

He said: "I did first aid training last January. It taught the techniques of administering CPR and you get taught how many compressions to do. Everyone should receive even a little bit of that training."

He added that a defibrillator should be placed in that area of the park given its size and the bridge's popularity.

Earlier today, Mr Morris stopped by the canal lock to lay some flowers and show his respects.

On Thursday morning, a Hertfordshire Constabulary spokeswoman said: "Police were called at around 2.20pm on Wednesday 12 May to report concerns for the welfare of a man in the canal at Cassiobury Park, in Watford.

"Officers attended alongside colleagues from the ambulance service.

"Emergency first aid was given but, sadly, the man aged in his 80s was pronounced dead. His next of kin have been informed.

"The incident is not being treated as suspicious and a report will be prepared for the coroner."