A 17-year-old teenager has been plucked to safety after he was trapped between two logs in the raging Allyn River on Sunday.
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The teen lost his footing and was swept away in the fast flowing debris-filled river at Allynbrook, near Gresford, after attempting to retrieve a kayak.
Senior Constable Mitch Parker from Dungog Police said the teen, from a nearby property, was with three friends when they tried to retrieve a kayak from the river on Sunday morning.
"From what we understand they walked into the river and got to about waist height when they realised they needed to turn back as the river was flowing too fast
"One of the boys has then been pushed by the force of the water and lost his footing and was swept away."
He ended up behind the Mary on Allyn Church where he was pinned between two logs from his waist down.
His friends immediately raised the alarm and Dungog Police, Fire and Rescue, paramedics and the State Emergency Service's swift water technicians arrived on scene around 9am.
Two days ago the river was not even flowing and today it's a raging torrent.
- Snr Const Mitch Parker
A rope line was put out to the teenager and he was eventually pulled to safety around 11.45am.
Senior Constable Parker said it was a tense two and a half hours for all involved, especially the trapped teen.
"Two days ago the river was not even flowing and today it's a raging torrent," he said.
"The water was rising when we were there and you could hear trees snapping further up stream, you could hear them cracking and falling.
"It was pretty frightening."
Senior Constable Parker who has received several bravery awards for water rescues said he would not have attempted to enter the river on Sunday morning without proper equipment.
"The team did an incredible job and hats off to (Dungog SES technician) Shane Zanardi who did a fantastic job.
"This kid was really scared, he was stuck and Shane had no other option but to do it himself. The river was just so fast and full of debris. It was a real tough job".
The teen was taken to hospital with minor injuries.
Senior Constable Parker said the incident highlighted the dangers of submerged debris in rivers and floodwater.
"They (the teenagers) weren't doing anything wrong, its not as though they were up to no good, they didn't try to swim in the river, it is just something that happened," said Snr Const Parker.