Two sisters from Sandhurst have been hospitalised in Mexico after being attacked by a crocodile while swimming in a lagoon.

The Daily Mail reports 28-year-old Melissa Laurie and her twin sister Georgia were swimming at night in Manialtepec Lagoon, near the popular tourist town Puerto Escondido about 450 miles south-east of Mexico City, when a crocodile dragged Melissa under the water.

The women’s father Sean Laurie told the paper Georgia, a diver who has life-saving experience, found Melissa face-down in the water several minutes later.

He said Georgia tried to bring Melissa back to their boat but the crocodile attacked again.

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Bracknell News:

Mr Laurie said: “Georgia had to fight it off. She kept punching it in the head.”

Their mother Sue Laurie said both sisters were rushed to hospital suffering bite injuries, with Melissa placed into a medically-induced coma.

Mrs Laurie said: “Melissa is alive, but we don’t know if her injuries are life-threatening or not.

“She has water on her lungs and she has been coughing up blood. So we don’t know if she has a punctured lung or not.”

Mr Laurie told the paper the sisters, who had been backpacking around the world, were visiting the lagoon with a tour company and their guide had assured them the water was safe to swim in.

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The Daily Mail says the parents are now weighing up whether they need to fly out to Mexico to bring their daughters back to England.

A spokeswoman for the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office said: “We are supporting the family of two British women who are in hospital in Mexico, and are in contact with the local authorities.”