It could not have been a worse time to get stuck in a lift – when you’re minutes away from setting off for the airport on holiday.

But that’s what happened to business student Jack Pogson yesterday as he prepared to leave for Amsterdam with his girlfriend, Katie Ward, to celebrate her 21st birthday.

The couple, who live in an apartment block in Mirfield, were due to set off for Manchester Airport when Mr Pogson got trapped in a lift.

He said: “I had got up at 5am. We were rushing to do the last bit of preparation. I put the bins out and got into the lift and it got stuck.

“I got quite annoyed. I did not have my phone on me. I was stranded hoping that Katie would come out.”

After about ten minutes, Miss Ward went in search of him and discovered what had happened.

They had no luck trying to get hold of an engineer so she dial 999 in desperation, as the couple were due to be picked up at 6.45am.

Fire crews quickly turned up and were able to release Mr Pogson by 7.20am.

He said: “I was really relieved and the crew was really helpful and we were laughing about it in the end.”

Assistant Chief Fire Officer Dave Walton said the fire service did not usually come out to people stuck in lifts but they had recognised the urgency of this situation.

The call-out came during a two-hour strike by the Fire Brigades Union, the ninth walk-out in the ongoing pensions row. It was one of two call-outs attended by back-up crews across West Yorkshire.