Two trucks had to be used to pull a digger from the Leeds Liverpool Canal at Bingley yesterday.

It is thought the vehicle rolled down a slipway into the water and got stuck in mud making first rescue attempts impossible.

The incident, which happened sometime after 9am, attracted a crowd of about 20 people who gathered to watch workers and some passers-by try to rescue it at Hainsworth Boat Transport, off Fairfax Road.

Christine Shears, who had been out walking, captured the scene on her camera.

She told the Telegraph & Argus: “I was there for about an hour watching them and they just couldn’t get it shifted – even with two trucks and ropes. The lock keeper from Five Rise came up to have a look, but it was still okay for boats to get past as long as they went slow.

“The owner of the digger was there by himself at first trying with one truck and shouting out across the canal that any help would be appreciated. A man passing on his bike with his family said he was a trucker and offered a hand, so he got in a second truck, but it was still too much of a big job."

No-one from Hainsworth Boat Transport wanted to comment.