THE heroes who came to the aid of those injured in the Didcot power station collapse have been praised for their actions.

Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (OUHNHSFT) chief executive Dr Bruno Holthof described staff who worked through the night after the February 23 disaster as "exceptional".

His praise was echoed by Wantage MP Ed Vaizey.

A major incident was declared after the collapse and five men were rushed to the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford for treatment.

Speaking at a meeting of the trust's board yesterday, Dr Holthof said: "This was a very good performance from the entire trust.

"It proved that we are well prepared for this sort of incident.

"We quickly called the hospital and in less than an hour the patients could be admitted as we had capacity for them."

Staff at the John Radcliffe were unsure how many injured people they would have to treat until ambulances brought them to the hospital, forcing them to react quickly to deal with the unfolding situation.

Mr Vaizey said: "I would praise all the emergency services.

"My understanding from what experienced people working on the site have said to me is that they feel it is one of the best operations they have been involved in.

"We are all very proud of them."

On Tuesday [8/3] the Oxford Mail reported how a colleague of one of the three men still missing under the rubble, as well as the partner of another of the men, had criticised the rescue effort for being too slow.

An online petition calling for work to be speeded up has now been signed by 1,635 and on Tuesday night plans for a peaceful protest at the power plant were announced on the petition page.

A time has not yet been confirmed.

Mr Vaizey said he sympathised with families who wanted their loved ones to be found but the emergency services faced a tricky operation.

He said: "The last thing we would want is an operation that went wrong because we took unnecessary risks.

"There is nothing that has led me to doubt in any way the commitment of the emergency services.

"They are working as fast as possible to get the three people still in the wreckage but they do have to be careful.

"They believe the structure they are dealing with is in a very dangerous state."

RWE Generation, which owns the site of the plant, said it was trying to act as quickly and safely as possible to locate the three men.

Spokeswoman Kelly Nye said: "We understand this is a difficult and distressing time for the families of the missing loved ones. In line with the Health and Safety Executive’s request, we are providing an independent expert’s assessment on the stability of the remaining structure on site.

"RWE recognises the impact this state of uncertainty must be having on the families concerned and it is of paramount importance to respond to this tragic situation."