A Hero passer-by swam through waist-deep water to save a bird tangled in a net.

Chanin Promsawad, 23, was walking to a neighbour's home when he noticed something twitching on the edge of a fish pond in Chachoengsao province, Thailand on July 25.

He went closer and found out a Chinese pond heron was trapped and dived to save it. Footage shows Chanin using a pair of scissors to carefully cut the strings that were stuck on the creature's feathers.

The good Samaritan was careful not to damage the bird's feathers so he walked closer to the banks and asked a friend to help him.

His friend Nongyao Tuampong said: ‘He did not want to leave the bird there and volunteered to free it. We were relieved it didn't drown before we arrived.'

The bird was released into a vacant patch of land with many trees on the opposite side of the road where the pond was.

Chinese pond herons, also known as Chinese bitterns, are small herons found in East Asia, including China, Japan, Korea, and the Russian Far East.