YOUNG Cameron Steel kept his cool when his mum collapsed and had a fit after a hair dryer gave her an electric shock.

The four-year-old calmly went upstairs to alert his dad, who was in the bath, and also called next door to summon help from a neighbour. And as the two adults tried to revive his mother, Tracy, he kept his year-old sister Sophie occupied by playing games with her.

Tracy, 28, was taken to hospital but has fully recovered from her ordeal on Saturday night and she believes her son's actions may have helped to save her life. "He is my little saviour,"' she said.

The drama happened as Tracy was drying Cameron's hair downstairs at the family home in Tantobie, near Stanley, while husband Mark, 30, who works at the Sage in Gateshead, was having a soak.

Tracey said: "All of a sudden, bang, I went flying across the room like Peter Pan and hit the wall.

"My vertebrae was trapped. I had a fit and I couldn't speak at all and I couldn't move. He went upstairs and told his dad, 'the telly's gone off and the hair dryer's gone off and mam's on the floor with Sophie.'

"At first he thought there was a power cut and I was playing with our daughter but he realised there was something more to it when he heard Cameron shouting 'mam, mam.'

"Mark got out of the bath, put a towel round him and came downstairs. Meanwhile, Cameron had gone to our next door neighbour Ronnie Peel."

Ronnie, 45, a former Army first aid instructor, rushed round to help Mark tend to Tracy.

He put her into the recovery position and was about to resuscitate her when she stopped breathing briefly. Mr Peel said: "She went down hill for a few seconds and I went to put on her on her back to do CPR but everything came back."

Tracy, who was temporarily paralysed, was taken by ambulance to University Hospital in Durham City for the night.

She said: "For the age of him, to know what to do and get Mark, get more help and keep Sophie occupied is amazing. My little lad was brilliant, fantastic. He has always been intelligent. He knows more than he should for his age."

Mr Peel said: "I thought he was excellent. He wasn't panicking. He was clear as a bell."

Tracy has thrown out the old dryer and Cameron could be in line for a trip to a balloon fiesta as a reward