COLLEAGUES of a young man who died in a road accident earlier this year had a cause close to their hearts when they raced in his memory on the River Wye.

Team HMS JS, made up of staff from the city's Sainsbury's store, competed in the Hereford Rotary River Festival Dragon Boat event on Bank Holiday Monday in memory of Thomas Wood.

Mr Wood was just 19-years-old when he was tragically killed in a collision on the A4103 in June.

As well as keeping his memory alive, the team was raising funds and awareness of the ELY Memorial Fund.

The charity provides a one-off gift payment of up to £2,000 towards the cost of a basic funeral to families in Herefordshire who lose a son or daughter, aged between 17 to 25, in a car accident.

And despite a downpour for much of the day, the festival was hailed as a success by organisers – with more than £7,000 raised for good causes.

Hereford's Sixth Sense Fitness was the overall winning rowing team while the Barrells regulars won the tug of war competition.

Meanwhile, one person won £1,000 in a duck race down the river.

Luke Conod, a spokesman for the festival, said: "We would like to thank all the teams who turned up and stayed with us throughout the day, even though we had torrential weather.

“Thanks also to everyone who bought tickets for the duck race, to our sponsors and those who turned up to volunteer and make the day possible."