A badly injured elderly woman has met the 'Florence Nightingale' heroine who saved her life, thanks to the Middlesbrough Evening Gazette.

Hilda Stead, (75), was comforted by pensioner Jeanne Cossins for nearly an hour as she lay trapped in a car after an horrific road accident.

But the identity of the heroine was a mystery until the Gazette tracked Mrs Cossins down following a front-page appeal, and the pair have been reunited.

After a head-on crash involving two cars, the car Mrs Stead burst into flames and was in danger of exploding.

But despite this, brave Mrs Cossins who had witnessed the accident, sat in the car with Mrs Stead and held her hand and talked to her to stop her lapsing into a coma.

She said: "The accident had just happened and looked horrific. Mrs Stead was trapped, but she never once complained despite her severe injuries and is a real heroine herself.

"It was wonderful to meet her in hospital and see her looking much better."

Do you have a story about the regional press? Ring 0116 227 3122/3121, or
e-mail pastill@nepmidlands.co.uk