Cwmavon man held woman's hand to stop M4 bridge jump

Michael Owen and his girlfriend Jemma Richards, both 22, stopped to help the woman

A rugby player from Neath Port Talbot held onto a woman's hand for more than an hour after she threatened to jump off an M4 bridge.

Michael Owen, 22, was travelling on the motorway with his girlfriend when they spotted the "distressed" woman.

Mr Owen, originally from Cwmavon, spoke to the woman while holding her hand to stop her from falling until emergency services arrived.

"I was just doing anything I could to help. It hasn't sunk in yet," he said.

The woman had jumped over the bridge's safety railings on the motorway near Chippenham, Wiltshire, when Mr Owen and his girlfriend Jemma Richards stopped their car to help her.

Mr Owen, who plays for Chinnor Rugby Club, said: "My girlfriend saw her first and we were trying to stop the traffic. When I got to her I managed to get my arms through the barriers to hold onto her.

"I have a broken finger from rugby so I was obviously in a bit of pain but I managed to get my grip.

"Through the whole process I was just trying to talk to her. One of the things that clicked was that she liked my accent so I started talking about the rugby."

Mr Owen said an elderly man also stopped to help before police and the fire service arrived.

"My family were overwhelmed when I told them," Mr Owen added.

"I just think I did what any other person would have done if they'd been in my situation."

Wiltshire Police said the woman was taken to the Great Western Hospital in Swindon but was uninjured.