A BRAVE eight-year-old boy called for an emergency ambulance crew after his little sister fell ill and started to have convulsions at their Spa home.

Keelan Merry, who lives with his mother Michelle and five-year-old sister Alexandra in Charles Henry Road, has been praised for his role in calmly calling 999 before explaining what the problem was as scared Michelle tried to tend to his sister.

The incident happened on Sunday at 9.30am. Alexandra has got a chest infection and tonsillitis and had a raised temperature on the day which caused her to pass out and have a fit.

It is not the first time that Alexandra has suffered from convulsions, but Michelle said that it had been a long time since the last incident and was only really a problem when her daughter was younger.

She said: "It has not happened for a while and I thought the problem had stopped. However, it happened again and it was very sudden and unexpected. It was very scary."

After seeing his sister on the floor Keelan calmly used the phone, asked for an ambulance and then asked Michelle questions that staff in the control room needed to know about the situation.

"Keelan was amazing, he was great. I have always told him what to do if it ever happened but it has been a long time since we had a problem. I was panicking and scared but he was very calm and made sure the ambulance got here as fast as possible. Thanks to him his sister was taken care of very quickly," Michelle added.

Alexandra was taken to the Worcestershire Royal Hospital because she was being sick after her fit when the ambulance arrived. A spokesman for Hereford and Worcester Ambulance Service said: "He was very calm and did what he was told to by control staff, which is important.

"He talked to us and did not panic at all which is something even adults have a problem doing let alone a young boy.

"His mum was understandably panicking but he was calm, it was very impressive and meant ambulance crews got there as soon as possible."

Keelan, who attends Chawson First School, in Wych Road, was given a round of applause by his classmates and praised by headteacher Gerry Hughes.

His sister Alexandra is now back at home after the incident, which doctors have put down to her raised temperature because of her tonsillitis and chest infection.