A local woman has spoken of her ordeal after she had to be dramatically saved from drowning and rescued from the river, when her vehicle was submerged and swept away by the water.Emergency services were called to a report of a woman trapped in a car in a ford through the Afon Dewi Fawr in St Clears at around 3.20 pm on Sunday, December 12, with police officers attending the scene along with colleagues from Coastguard, fire service and ambulance.

Luckily, driver Nicola Merriman from Ludchurch, Narberth, was rescued from her vehicle and taken to hospital to be checked over.

“I am very fortunate - I was rescued with literally seconds to spare when my car was submerged in water and I was completely trapped!” Nicola told the Observer.

She has thanked Jacqui Law and Dion Burke from Dogs4Wildlife who she was on her way to visit, for helping rescue her.

Speaking of the situation, Nicola said that the depth of Glasfryn Ford didn’t deter her driving a ‘high and sturdy’ car through, but locals have been campaigning for some time to see barriers introduced along that area.

“It was all fine and certainly I had no concern passing through initially. However, about half way through, the current veered me towards a tree against which I gently nestled,” she continued.

“I rolled down my drivers’ side window tried to push my way off back in the right direction, but to no avail. I then phoned Jacqui who I was on my way to see, to sound the alarm.

“All of a sudden though, that ‘gentle’ current suddenly wasn’t anymore and the water started to gush up and into the car, quite swiftly! I thought I did everything right, such as follow the upper area of the car that still had airway.

“At this point, the electrics of the car completely stopped and everything locked.

“Jacqui and Dion had been on the case calling all the emergency services, but it began to get critical, so Dion using every ounce of his energy tried to crash my windscreen with logs to get me out.”

By now Nicola was completely submerged under water, and passed out a couple of times she said.

Jacqui spotted one isolated rock, and it was with this that Dion managed to thrash a hole in the windscreen of the vehicle, rummage around in the murky water and grab Nicola to pull her face towards oxygen, before she was finally able to expel the ingested water.

“It was split second stuff!” remarked Nicola, who said that if it wasn’t for Jacqui and Dion, and whatever/whomever her higher power is, she would not be here.

She also thanked staff at Glangwili Hospital in Carmarthen, who were ‘amazing’.

“I am so full of love and gratitude to the selfless people who came to my rescue... words can’t express how much!” she added.

A similar incident occurred back in February of 2019, in the same spot, where an elderly couple had to be rescued after their car was swept away and submerged in the river.

The car became wedged on another vehicle which had previously been swept away, which aided the rescue attempt.

Nicola’s rescuers, and others living in the locality have been desperately trying to lobby for barriers to be put into place, and calls have been further ramped up for Carmarthenshire County Council to act following the latest incident, before a serious tragedy occurs.A spokesperson for Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service said: “At 3.23 pm on Sunday, December 12, crews from Whitland, Carmarthen and Swansea Central were mobilised to an incident near St Clears, following reports of a car having entered flood water.“A Swift Water Rescue Team was deployed and, using wading gear and a swift water rescue sled, rescued a female casualty from the vehicle.“The Police and Ambulance Service were also in attendance.“The Fire Service left the incident at 5.01 pm.”