TWO campers were winched to safety after becoming trapped in the middle of a flooded river.

An RAF helicopter was called after a flash flood stranded the couple on an island in the River Swale, near Marske, in Swaledale, North Yorkshire, yesterday morning.

Doug Palfreeman, 45, and Laura Burke, 26, from St Albans, in Hertfordshire, had pitched their tent on the island on Thursday night.

They were cooking a fried breakfast on a gas stove the next morning when a flash flood turned the river into a raging torrent.

Mr Palfreeman said: "We decided to camp on the island as a bit of an adventure.

"We pitched the tent and it was raining all through the night.

"We got up to make breakfast, at the same time keeping an eye on the water, but it was still just inches deep.

"I was just turning the bacon when I heard the sound of rushing water - and suddenly it was all around us."

Miss Burke said: "We called for help on a mobile - and then decided we should finish the breakfast to keep our strength up."

Firefighters from Richmond and Reeth arrived within 15 minutes.

Crews initially tried to reach the couple using ropes.

Crew manager Craig Miller said: "We could have got across, but it would have been difficult to get the campers back across the river.

"We called for assistance from the RAF, at the same time keeping an eye on the water level."

An RAF helicopter was scrambled from RAF Leconfield, in Humberside.

The helicopter arrived within 30 minutes.

The campers were winched to safety and dropped in a nearby field.

The couple planned to spend last night in a bed and breakfast.