RUSH-HOUR traffic in Newport was reduced to a crawl last night as rescuers worked to free a man trapped in river-bank mud.

Long queues built up around the Old Green crossing as the emergency services rescued the man, stuck on a bank of the River Usk. The man has not been named.

The incident happened just before 5pm by The Wave below the Town Bridge. A South Wales Fire Service spokeswoman told the Argus one fire crew from Maindee together with a crew from Malpas who manned its rescue boat, helped out in the operation.

The two crews were able to use inflatable walkways to pluck the man to safety. The spokeswoman said: "Firecrews from Maindee and a crew operating the life boat from Malpas attended an incident at The Wave and rescued a man in a distressed state from the mud flat.

"He was brought to safety within ten minutes and passed to the ambulance service." Police said the traffic delays were mainly caused by motorists who slowed down to watch the unfolding rescue operation.

The man, who is believed to be from Newport, was in a "distressed state" by the time he was freed, rescuers said.

He was taken to Newport's Royal Gwent as a precaution, but had not suffered any serious injury.

Police say it is not clear how the man got into difficulty and are still investigating the incident.

A police spokesman said: "The main problem was people stopping to look at what was going on but traffic levels returned to normal soon after."