A DRAMATIC rescue was launched by a group of brave young dragon boaters as they battled to save the life of an elderly woman who slipped and fell into the River Severn.

The teenagers' actions have been lauded as "brave" and "heroic" after they managed to save the drowning 75-year-old woman by dragging her out of the fast-moving river in Northwick.

Her muffled cries for help were overheard by the under 18s Great Britain Dragon Boat Squad who had gone out to practise later than planned because of the bad weather.

Head coach Matthew Richardson said he was proud of the way the team, who are aged between 12 and 17 years old, behaved during the successful rescue attempt on Saturday afternoon.

Police have been in contact since to tell them the woman was released from Worcestershire Royal Hospital the following day.

Mr Richardson, from St Helens, said: "We went out on the water and were coming back when we could hear a muffled sound from someone.

"We were looking around but couldn't see where it was coming from.

"At first, I thought someone was getting attacked but then I could see hands in the water and the top of someone's face just above the water.

"I got the kids to stop paddling and briefed them on what we were going to do.

"We got her to hold on to the side of the boat and pulled her in before taking her back to our base and giving her a warm shower.

"She seemed a bit delirious at first and didn't seem to know what was going on but once she had a shower she came around a bit more."

She told the team, several of whom are from Worcester, that she had been walking by the side of the river when she slipped on mud and fell into the water.

The fast-moving water had pushed her quickly down the river and into the path of the dragon boat which was coming upstream to return to the 5th Worcester Sea Scout hut in Park View Terrace, Northwick.

The 26-year-old, who is first aid trained, said: "She was incredibly lucky because she had already been in the water for two to three minutes and when we heard her it sounded like she had run out of energy.

"I am just so proud of the team - they acted calmly and were absolutely fantastic.

"It's something that has never happened to us before and we spend a lot of time on the water but they were really, really good.

"They were concerned about her afterwards and we were all over the moon to find out that she is well."

There were 20 teenagers on the boat as well as Mr Richardson and a helm.

Their quick-thinking actions have been praised by the emergency services including West Mercia Police's Operations Patrol Unit (OPU) who called them "brave" and "heroic".

From its Twitter account @OPUWorcs, said: "Big thank you to the brave members of the British Dragon Boat Assoc. who saved the life of a drowning lady.

"Brave members dragged the lady out of the flow in the centre of the river near Northwick. They administered life saving first aid.

"Their heroic actions saved the lady from perishing. #bestofBritishspirit."

Praise has also come from West Midlands Ambulance Service, who sent an ambulance, rapid response paramedic and paramedic area support before taking the woman to hospital.

A spokesman said: “West Midlands Ambulance Service would like to take the opportunity to praise the actions of those who acted so quickly to help treat the patient.

”Every second is vital when trying to save someone’s life and by acting as quickly as they did in this incident, they have certainly had a positive impact.

“We would encourage anyone who can, to undertake first aid training, as one day it could be your turn to save a life.”