Two British bikers on a charity trek across the globe were saved by rescuers after becoming lost in a blizzard in Turkey.

Rory Elliott and Chris Colling, both 28, narrowly escaped with their lives after they became trapped in heavy snow.

The duo are raising money for SOS Children, a UK charity for orphaned and abandoned children, with a marathon motorbike trek from Beijing to London.

They became trapped during a blizzard near the village of Dereici of the south eastern town of Yuksekova, bordering Iran and Iraq.

Heavy snowfall has affected life in most parts of Turkey over the past few weeks.

After the rescue by Turkish authorities, the pair were taken to Yuksekova and given food and shelter.

The duo, both born on the same day in January 1978, set off from Beijing in August and have so far travelled through six countries and covered more than 5,000 miles.

On the way, sound engineer Mr Colling, from Leeds, and Mr Elliott, from Durham, who organises overseas expeditions, have visited SOS Children's Villages, including one in Lahore, Pakistan.

Chrissy Davey, of SOS Children, said: "It is very worrying that this has happened and we are all hoping they are safe and well.

"They started in China in summer 2004 and are travelling through South east Asia, Pakistan, India and now central Asia.

"They idea is to get back to the UK, stopping in SOS villages along the route.

"They are raising much needed money for SOS, which we are extremely grateful for.

"We are waiting for more news and it will a great relief to everyone here when we can contact them."

In a dispatch on the SOS website last year, Rory Elliott wrote: "The 3 peaks are conquered and raised a lot of money, next step is the bike ride across south east asia, middle east and Europe, about 17,000 miles all together.

"I will be visiting a number of the SOS centers on my motorbike trip, China, Vietnam, Kyrgyzstan, and Azerbajdzan where I can meet the children that your kind donations will be helping."