A YOUNG man drowned in the Manchester Ship Canal as horrified office workers looked on helplessly from their windows.

Police were called after the man in his mid-20s was seen dangling from the edge of a canal path between Trafford Road Bridge and the Pomona tram station.

Officers tried to coax him away from the water at Exchange Quay. But the man, who had been holding on to chains attached to the side of the canal, appeared to jump in.

Witnesses said officers tried to use a belt as a lifeline for the man and then dived into the water after being joined by two colleagues.

Company boss Kay Clough, 32, whose offices overlook the scene, said: "After the guy jumped in, his arms were waving everywhere but eventually he put his hands together and just sank.

"After about five minutes a policeman dived in after him with no safety equipment, only a rope tied round his waist.

"He spent five or 10 minutes looking for him and after a while another police officer jumped in, but they couldn't find his body."

Another worker, Martina O'Brien, said: "The police were handing him things but he wouldn't take them. At one point they threw out a rope and an orange buoy, but he turned his face away."

Shouting

But business surveyor Katy Lund, who saw the incident at about 4pm yesterday from an office on the other side of the canal, believed officers hesitated in responding to the situation.

Ms Lund, a qualified lifeguard, said: "The boy fell into the water and he was thrashing around for two minutes and the police officers didn't really do anything. The man either couldn't swim or was a very weak swimmer.

"The police officer could just have leaned on to one of the chains and grabbed him because he was less than a metre away from the bank, but they didn't go into the water until they were joined by another two.

"Everyone in our office was shouting at the police to jump in to save him. These officers looked like they were just not trained to deal with it."

Chief Constable Michael Todd visited the scene but police said this was because he happened to be passing.

A police spokeswoman said: "Officers spoke to the man and tried to encourage him to come away from the canal. He was then seen to step from the chains and into the canal, going under the water. Two officers jumped in after him, while other officers called instructions to him from the quayside."

Police divers and fire service crews were still trying to locate the body last night.