Watch the harrowing rescue of a man stuck in a flooded river

A man was rescued from the torrential floodwaters of the swollen Los Angeles River in a dramatic rescue operation.

The man was trapped in the river and holding on to a concrete barrier when a rescuer from the Los Angeles Fire Department was lowered from a helicopter.

The paramedic then secured the man to a cable before heaving the couple back to the helicopter.

The 51-year-old man was taken to the hospital for hypothermia.