Two women have been applauded for jumping into a freezing cold pond to rescue a trapped water bird caught in a fishing line.

Sam Perryman, 33, from Huyton, was out walking with her mum and niece around 2pm this afternoon when she spotted another young woman, named locally as Holly, in the water at Stadt Moers Park in Whiston.

A Great Crested Grebe, which was said to have been "struggling for two hours" could be seen by residents with its foot caught in a fishing line.

Seeing the bird distressed, Holly got into the water to attempt the cut it free and was minutes later followed by Sam, who brought it safely out of the water and wrapped it in a blanket.

Sam told the ECHO: "I was just out with my mum and my niece, we were out walking our dog. I'd just finished work and I decided to go for a nice walk with them because it's our local park and we're down there pretty much every day.

"I'm on the way past the lake and I could just see loads of commotion. There was a girl clung to a branch in the water."

Sam said others were concerned about Holly getting hypothermia, but that she refused to get out of the cold water and leave the bird in distress.

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Sam said: "She asked can someone come with me so I said ok and in I went.

"I had to do it. I'm an absolute animal lover so the thought of an animal being left there like that - it was going to drown.

"I had to see what I could do. I'm a strong swimmer, so I thought why not."

Sam said she attempted to walk into the water from a shallow end but ended up tripping into the pond because of uneven tree roots at the bottom.

She said the coldness of the water "took her breath away" and the smell was "horrific," but that she was determined to free the bird.

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Sam said she was struggling to break the wire and Holly brought scissors in an attempt to cut the line, but she soon managed to unhook the birds foot from what she describes as "weighted" fishing line.

Sam said: "I managed to get over to it and it was scared. It was opening its beak at me but in the end I managed to find where the line was and follow it up and it was stuck in its foot."

Sam said the bird began to swim away but that there were concerns it was badly injured, so she swam back and said it "wasn't aggressive" when she picked it up and brought it out the water, wrapping it in a blanket.

Sam said: "People were filming and everything, it was so embarrassing.

"I don't think my mum could believe it. I think she was a bit in shock herself that I'd just gone and done it."

Cllr Terry Byron, who is also chair of Friends of Stadt Moers, was out walking when he spotted the women rescuing the Great Crested Grebe.

Sam said he called the park ranger and assisted in helping the injured bird. Cllr Byron has since confirmed the animal has been taken to a local vets to seek further attention.

Cllr Byron said: "I could see when I got done there the bird trapped in the water and from that distance where I was I couldn't tell what it was.

"There was a crowd mulling around because people had seen what was going on with this poor bird struggling to get free from this fishing line.

"My first reaction for the poor bird was sympathy for damaging its leg, then shock for seeing the two girls in the water.

"That pond is quite dangerous so I wouldn't suggest anyone to do it but they'd already did it, they were in the water when I spotted them.

"Somehow the two ladies got the fishing line free, but when they were sat on the bench one of the legs looked to be damaged."

Cllr Byron said when they got out of the water the women "received an applause" and many residents stopped to take pictures and film what happened.