FOUR men died last night when their car careered off the road and plunged in to an icy Gwent river.

A fifth man, believed to be the brother of one of those who died, managed to escape and raise the alarm. He is today in hospital suffering hypothermia and shock.

The tragedy happened just before 9.30pm as the grey Volkswagen Polo travelling towards Newport left the B4596 Caerleon road around 100 yards from the St Julians pub. The car apparently skidded through trees before ploughing down an embankment and in to the River Usk.

Emergency services battled to reach the men.

Richard Higgins, station chairman at Chepstow's Severn Area Rescue Association (SARA), said his seven-man crew was called by police at around 10pm.

"The condition of the river made the search quite difficult.

"We had to wait until the level of the water dropped, the current was fast and the water extremely cold.

"There was frost forming on our boat and I would say that the survival time would have been just minutes."

The Volkswagen, with four bodies inside, was found at around midnight.

A police spokesman said: "The dead are aged 22, 23, 34, and 35." They were all from the Newport area. "A 22-year-old man is being treated in hospital for hypothermia and shock."

Roy Vandermeer, 54, was one of the first at the scene.

He told the Argus: "I became aware there had been an incident when I saw the police helicopter and I came out of my house which is across the road from where it happened to see if I could be of assistance.

"There are skid marks on the road and I knew pretty early on that there had been an accident involving a car carrying five men which went into the river. The four men who didn't manage to get out didn't stand much chance, not in that river. It's very, very cold."

Mr Vandermeer said: "Speed is a problem on this road and an accident like this has been on the cards for some time. There are warning signs but we need actual cameras."

Accident investigators were today at the scene and any witnesses are asked to contact Gwent Police on 01633 838111.

*Pictured: The spot where the car left the road