Tourists and paramedics battled for four hours to rescue a holidaymaker who got stuck in a bog after falling and breaking her ankle near a Mid Wales beauty spot.

The woman had to be dragged 100 yards by the group to a four-wheel drive vehicle in “atrocious” weather conditions near to the top of the 240ft high Llanrhaeadr waterfall before being flown by air ambulance to hospital in Shrewsbury for treatment.

Phil Facey, manager of the waterfall’s visitor centre, said it was only because of the help provided by other holidaymakers that the woman was rescued on Sunday evening.

He said: “The woman, who I think was from the Birmingham area, had fallen into an area of swampy muddy ground near the top of the waterfall at about 5pm.

“She was with her husband and their three children when she fell. She could not get up because of her injury, the mud which was about three feet deep.

“A group of lads from Nottingham, who had been walking in the mountains, agreed to go back up and see if they could help.

“The weather got really bad with cold, squally showers and the paramedics and the other visitors really struggled to move her.

“An air ambulance was called but could not land at the top of the waterfall because of the conditions.

“In the end I drove my 4×4 on an old track to near the top of the waterfall and we managed to drag her to it and bundle her in and drive her down to the helicopter. It was a real team effort.”

West Midlands Ambulance Service spokeswoman Suzie Fothergill said one person suffering from a fractured ankle was taken to the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital.