Father and son business offers to help NHS workers after coastal rescue effort

The staff from Tyne and Wear Access Ltd prepare to pull a car free in Marsden earlier today.

Tyne and Wear Access Ltd staff spent part of this morning helping free people who had become stuck on the Coast Road at Marsden in South Shields.

One taxi driver had been stranded for hours, with around 10 vehicles pulled out of the snow with their 4x4.

The staff at Tyne and Wear Access Ltd have their vehicle at the ready to help NHS staff.

Now the team are looking to offer help to health workers for free from now up until 10.30pm with one of its Land Rover Defenders, ensuring they can get about,

Kevin Lewins, who runs the Hebburn-based business with son John, said: "There are some people who still need to do their jobs in this bad weather.

"We just want to help.

"We already do a lot of work with Sunderland Royal and the hospital in Shields."

Tyne and Wear Access Ltd's Land Rover Defender gets ready to tow a vehicle on the Coast Road.

John, who lives in Sunderland and came across the stranded drivers in Marsden on his way into work, said: "I saw them as we came down the road and I could see they were backed up, so I though we'd better pull them out."

The message about helping NHS staff has been spread wide, with the note shared more than 2,000 times from the firm's Facebook page.

It said: "Any doctors, nurses, emergency services that are stuck and need to get to a place of work etc, we are available to take you free of charge from 4pm until 10.30pm in our Land Rover Defender while it’s bad weather all.

"We have been contacted from Sunderland hospital and we are going to provide them with 4x4 response as a priority."

The company, which has a staff of six, offers training and also hires out plant and machinery.