Police were called to Backwell Lake to retrieve a firearm from the water.
A member of the public called police at just before 2pm on Monday (July 20) to report they had seen a suspected firearm in the lake.
Staff from local firm Channel Kayaks were drafted in to go out into the water to retrieve the weapon.
The firearm was confirmed as an air rifle.
It is not known how it ended up in the lake.
Local police say ‘as far as they know’ the gun was not used in a crime.
The firearm has now been booked into the police store.
A police spokesman said: “A member of the public called police at about 1.50pm on Monday 20 July to report spotting a suspected firearm in Backwell Lake.
“Neighbourhood officers attended and thanks to help from local firm Channel Kayaks were able to retrieve the item, an air rifle, and book it into the police property store by 3.40pm.”
Local police tweeted a message of thanks to Channel Kayaks after the find – thanking them for stopping them getting their feet wet.
This is not the first time police have enlisted the help of the kayak company to clear objects from the lake.
A combined operation between community police, Wessex Water and Channel Kayaks cleared discarded litter and large rubbish bin from Backwell lake in April last year.
The rubbish had been deposited by louts ‘partying’ on a Sunday evening.
The lake is owned by Wessex Water and was designated as a Nature Reserve in 1990.
Backwell Lake is near the railway station and is a haven for a diversity of wildlife including grey herons, pipistrelle bats and rare dragonflies.
