A PAIR of council workers were the heroes earlier this week when they stepped in to rescue an elderly woman who had fallen in the road.

Darryl Carter and David Malson were travelling through Pontypool town centre on Monday when they spotted the woman lying face down between two cars.

"We were driving past the old Free Press office towards the town centre and I spotted two legs between two cars," said Mr Carter. "We pulled over and saw the lady lying face down with a gash above her eye."

They jumped into action and, with the help of a passer-by, made her comfortable and phoned for an ambulance.

But because the woman's injuries weren't life-threatening, a 999 operator told the two Streetscene workers they were unable to say when paramedics would arrive.

"We turned her over and sat her up - I sat behind her to support her," Mr Carter, 39, said. "Another gentleman brought a pillow and blankets and we called 999.

"The operator explained they could not give us an idea of when the ambulance would arrive so, after speaking to them and the lady, we decided to carry her into the van and take her home so she could wait in the warm.

"When we got there we made sure she was comfortable and warm and called the ambulance service again to let them know where she was.

"I also left my number with her and she called a couple of days later to say the paramedics had been and she needed three stitches for the cut."

Mr Malson, 27, said: "She had only been there about 10 minutes but she was already shaking with the cold.

"We were just glad we were able to help."

The two workers have won praise from their employer, Torfaen Council, for their selfless actions.

Streetscene operations co-ordinator Sian Watkins said: "We are very proud of both of our staff members.

"They didn’t think twice about rescuing the elderly lady, and making sure that she, and her husband got home safely. We are glad to hear she is recovering well."