It’s not a job for the faint-hearted, but someone has to do it.

KM Group photographer Darren Small managed to capture these pictures of workmen before they made the plunge off the Kingsferry Bridge.

The engineers from Bridgezone Ltd were there to carry out a routine maintenance inspection.

A spokesman for Network Rail, which owns the bridge off Sheppey Way, said they needed to hang off the side to get a good look at the structure.

Built in 1960, the bridge is powered by an electric motor underneath the road.

An engine room either side operates the wire rope, and counter weights lift and lower the bridge.

So far, it has been raised more than 100,000 times, with every lift recorded.

The maximum bridge lifting height is 84 feet and, when reached, a claxon sound is heard to confirm the bridge is at full height.

Luckily the platform did not go up while the workmen were still dangling from it as bridge lifts were suspended until the work was complete.

A safety boat was stationed in The Swale, but not needed.