Hero workers rescue baby girl from River Severn in Shrewsbury

James Williams and Andy Hill leapt into the freezing water when the six-month old girl's pram was caught in a gust of wind and blown away from her grandmother and into The Weir in Shrewsbury.

Their colleague Mickey Bramwell then threw in a lifebuoy and gave first aid treatment. The Shrewsbury Town Council workers heard the grandmother scream and rushed to the rescue.

The baby was taken to Royal Shrewsbury Hospital for checks and was later released.

The men were carrying out grounds maintenance work near Sydney Avenue when they heard the grandmother's screams.

Mr Williams said: "We heard a shriek and a scream and turned around and realised the baby had actually gone into the river.

"We just ran and jumped straight in, myself and my colleague Andy Hill and at this point the pushchair was submerged and the baby was face down. It was a question of turning the pram over and trying to release the baby from the pushchair, which we managed to do even though it was extremely cold.

"As we released the baby my colleague Mickey Bramwell had got the lifebuoy and threw that into us so we had something to stabilise us and when we released the baby we passed the baby up to Nicky.

"The baby came out cold and wet but very, very quiet, she was not screaming or making any sound at all.

"She had been submerged for about 30 to 40 seconds. Nicky managed to hold her at the right angle and water came out. If it was not for the lifebuoy we would not have been able to get out."

He said his main concern now was the baby's health and added it was "fantastic news" she was out of hospital.

He added: "The way we acted was instinctive, it was in panic and I would like to think any other passer-by would do it."

A woman who was walking past, who did not want to be named, said: "They heard a scream and the baby was in the water.

"They jumped straight in the water and grabbed the pram, then the man on the bank helped them out. It looked freezing cold. They deserve a medal." Police Inspector Paul Mathison praised the brave workers' actions, which he said averted a possible fatality.

He said: "Were it not for their quick-thinking and brave actions this incident could have ended in tragedy."

Council spokeswoman Suzi Wilkinson said the men had been sent home for the rest of the day to recover. She said: "They were shaken by the whole episode but they acted quickly and did a wonderful job." A message on the Shrewsbury Town Council website read: "So proud of our staff ."

A post on the Shrewsbury Town Council's Facebook page read: You may have heard we've #heroes in our midst! So proud of our staff, they're taking time to recover at mo but we'll tell you more on Mon!"

West Midlands Ambulance Service spokesman Jamie Arrowsmith said they received a call at 10.30am yesterday.

He said: "Bystanders had already rescued the baby from the water prior to our arrival.

"Crews treated the baby for the effects of hypothermia before transferring her to Royal Shrewsbury Hospital for further assessment."