Two students from the York area have been rescued from an icy mountain on the Isle of Skye.

Helen Morley, 20, of Common Farm, High Catton, near Stamford Bridge, and Christian Hasner, 18, of Elmlands Grove, York, were taken to safety by the Skye Mountain Rescue Team.

Police said the two students, along with a friend from Wales, who are all at university in Scotland, had been walking near the pinnacle of the Old Man of Storr mountain yesterday afternoon when they had become "cragfast" - unable to get any higher or lower.

It is understood conditions were treacherous because of black ice, and they were in danger of falling 100 feet. They called for help on a mobile phone, and the mountain rescue team was scrambled and safely escorted them off the mountain.

A police spokesman said: "It was icy and the wind was gusting, and they feared they might slip. They thought it was better to stay put and call for help, which was the wise thing to do."

He said the rescue team had been able to talk them safely across to a nearby footpath, and they had descended from the mountain without incident.

Updated: 11:05 Wednesday, January 31, 2001