Teens save suicide gran from river

TWO teenage boys have been praised for their bravery after saving an elderly woman from killing herself in an icy river.

17-year-old Kara and 19-year-old Vivien were alerted by another man who witnessed the woman in her 80s climb over a safety barrier and jump into the 6°C water at Bar-sur-Aube, in the Aube department, on Friday.

The teenagers jumped in after her and dragged the woman to the riverbank, where the witness helped them out of the water with a pole.

The elderly woman said she was suffering from depression and loneliness. She was taken to hospital with hypothermia.

Kara told RTL: "She told us that things were not going well, that she felt isolated. Vivien told her he wouldn't like to see his own grandmother die like this - and she changed her mind."

The mayor of the village, René Gaudot, has awarded a bravery medal to the two teenagers and the retired man who raised the alarm and helped them from the riverbank.

"They deserve it," he told reporters. "The water was extremely cold."