A WORCESTERSHIRE schoolgirl feared that she was just minutes from death when she got caught up in the crush during the Birmingham Christmas lights switch-on concert.

Fourteen-year-old Ellie Jones, who lives in Vines Lane, Droitwich, and goes to Droitwich Spa High School, joined a group of friends to visit the free event and switch-on festivities at the Millennium Point at 1.30pm on Saturday.

But a crowd surge when headline act JLS performed, coupled with the unprecedented number of young pop fans who turned up for the concert, led to scores of people being injured in a massive crush.

Some 27,000 people attended the event, which left 60 people injured with four needing hospital treatment.

Ellie was caught up in the shocking scenes when six people and a metal barrier collapsed on top of the scared teenager.

Ellie was trapped by the weight of the crowd as a police woman frantically tried to pull her free.

“It happened so fast,” she said. “People were pushing and the next thing I remember is being on my back with the metal fence on top of me and then more people on top of that. I thought I was going to die and just kept screaming.

“The policewoman was holding my head and I stayed quiet for a while. I couldn’t feel my legs any more. It was at this point I heard the policewoman say: ‘This one’s a goner’.

“I was scared and started to scream again so they knew I was alive.”

Brave Ellie passed out twice during the incident, lost her shoes and also broke her mobile phone due to the force of the crowd surge. It was only the actions of security guard Jason Astley that saved her life.

“They tried to get me out three times and eventually Jason managed to pull me out. I am very thankful to him. He saved my life,” said Ellie.

Mr Astley carried Ellie to a paramedic station to get her checked over. Ellie’s parents then took her to hospital where she stayed overnight for observation and treatment for the cuts and bruising on her legs.

Security guard Jason Astley, aged 40, from Dudley, said: “It was a terrible accident. If you could paint a picture of fear it would have been Ellie’s face at the time. Something just took over me, I don’t know where I found the strength, but I managed to drag her out.

“Women and children were screaming all around. I have been working as a security guard for more than 15 years, so maybe my experience helped. I’m just glad she is all right.”