Two friends died after getting into difficulty while swimming in the River Avon, an inquest has heard.

Swindon men Velly Souza, 25, and Samuel Fernandes, 20, were pulled from the water at Bathampton Weir in Bath, Somerset, on May 28.

Avon Coroner's Court heard that the men, who worked at Tesco in Ocotal Way, had been visiting the area with four friends on a day off.

Five members of the group entered the water, which the inquest heard was deep and cold despite it being a hot day.

Witnesses described hearing shouting before Mr Souza and Mr Fernandes were seen to disappear underwater.

Others at the weir attempted to rescue the men, from Goa, as well as a third man, who was helped to safety with a float.

Water rescue teams from Avon Fire & Rescue Service later pulled Mr Souza and Mr Fernandes from the water.

The men were pronounced dead at the scene, with post-mortem examinations finding that they had both died from drowning.

Avon coroner Dr Peter Harrowing said: "I want to extend my sincere condolences to their families.

"It is tragic that a day which started out as a day of enjoyment for these young people ended so tragically.

"It serves only to highlight the dangers of swimming in water that may appear calm but can have undercurrents."

The inquest heard that the two men, who worked for Tesco, arrived at Bathampton Weir with four friends at about 3.45pm.

Five of them decided to go for a swim in the river.

One man described how he began to panic after entering the water as he was unable to touch the bottom.

"The water was cold, which shocked me because it was quite a warm day," he said in a statement.

"Samuel and Velly started to swim across the river. They didn't get all the way across.

"I could see they were in trouble. I wanted to help them so I started to swim towards them.

"I was thrashing my arms around and paddling my legs to stay afloat.

"It was like a current under the water was pulling me down. I was exhausted. I thought I was going to die."

He was thrown a float by a member of the public and pulled to the river bank before being taken to hospital.

Another friend described how Mr Souza and Mr Fernandes "appeared to be in trouble".

"They were not moving their arms and I could see their heads slowly going under the surface of the water," she said.

"They went under and disappeared."

Emergency services were called to the weir shortly after 4pm.

Mr Souza and Mr Fernandes were pulled from the water about an hour later and pronounced dead at the scene.

Post-mortem examinations by Home Office pathologist Dr Russell Delaney concluded that both men had died from drowning.

Dr Delaney confirmed that neither of the men had consumed alcohol or drugs before their deaths.