A MAN was airlifted to hospital with suspected spinal injuries after he and his brother fell 30 feet from the roof of a house near Selby.

Peter McKeating, 37, and his brother, Paul, in his early 40s, were repairing the roof of a house in Kelfield Road, in Riccall, just after 11am yesterday when they fell.

Margaret Wetherell, who lives at the property with her husband, Paul, the managing director of Wetherell's department store, in Selby, said paramedics were at the scene within ten minutes.

They took Paul McKeating to York Hospital. An ambulance spokeswoman said his injuries were not believed to be serious.

She said the Yorkshire Air Ambulance had been called to take his brother, who suffered suspected spinal, pelvic and lower leg injuries, to Leeds General Infirmary.

Mrs Wetherell, who was in the garden when the accident happened, said the brothers, both from Bradford, were repairing some tiles and ridge tiles on the roof, which had been leaking.

She said a ladder had been propped up against guttering, which had broken away, apparently causing the ladder to fall.

"I was just watering the garden, and I heard someone shouting help, help, please help us'," she said. "I came around the house and they were lying on the floor. They were both conscious, but couldn't move.

"I was horrified when I saw them.

"They were in quite a bit of pain. The paramedics gave them something to stop the pain when they arrived."

Mrs Wetherell said she normally worked on Wednesdays.

"It's a good job I was here, otherwise I don't know what they would have done," she said.

Phil Matthews, Mrs Wetherell's window cleaner for some 20 years, had put the brothers in touch with her.

"We're all a bit upset here, we don't know exactly what happened," Mr Matthews said.

"I took them there this morning because they didn't know the area.

"I left them as they were getting everything ready to go up. I was halfway back to Bradford, when I got a phone call from Paul saying they'd both fallen off the roof."

He said the men were experienced roofers who had done a good job.

"It looks like part of the guttering dropped at one side, but whether the ladder slipped, I don't know," he said.

"They had ample equipment for the job."

One neighbour, who asked not to be named, said: "There was a lot of activity down there. The air ambulance landed in the field next to the house and they took someone away."

Tony Lidgate, a spokesman for North Yorkshire Police, said they had been called to the incident.

A spokeswoman for the Health and Safety Executive said they were liaising with the police and were investigating the incident.