Freezing woman rescued after electric wheelchair breaks down

A disabled woman who took refuge from the icy conditions in a chemist after her electric wheelchair broke down was rescued by a fire crew.

Fire fighters from South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue put a blanket on the "freezing" woman, who was not wearing a coat, before driving her home after she became stranded in Moorends, Doncaster.

It took three fire fighters almost half an hour to push the heavy eight-battery chair a quarter of a mile through ice and snow to her home.

Daz Robertson, who drove her back, said the woman had been out doing some errands, but could not use her keys to get into the house when she returned because her fingers were too cold.

She went out on the chair to seek help, which was when the batteries went flat and she was taken in by a chemist, which stayed open late to look after her as darkness fell.

Thorne Blue Watch attended after police, who were initially called, were unable to get to the lady, at 5.38pm on Thursday.

Mr Robertson, station manager of Thorne fire station, said: "I thought, I'll go push her back myself, not wanting to tie an appliance up.

"I tried pushing it myself and it was more of a wheelchair than I thought it would be.

"It was quite heavy and with the occupant in it and the conditions I thought I'm not going to be able to manage this on my own."

The father-of-two added: "She was a bit stressed, I managed to calm her down ... when we explained what we were doing and managed to get her home she really appreciated it."

The team made sure she was OK, checked her smoke alarms were working and put her shopping away before they left the house.

A spokesman from South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue said: "We are proud of the help given by these fire fighters who came to the aid of a vulnerable member of the public - without their swift intervention her safety would have been at risk."