Rescuers battled in vain to save the life of a workman buried alive after a trench collapsed at a luxury homes development in Bradford.

Almost seven hours after tons of earth and hardcore caved in on the 23-year-old, his body was finally lifted out by those who had desperately fought to keep him alive.

The man has been named locally as 23-year-old Andrew Lancaster, a son of Bradford property landlord Charles Lancaster who has an office at Clayton Heights, Bradford, and lives in Calverley.

The tragedy happened shortly after 11am yesterday as contractors dug a trench through the centre of an asphalt drive which leads to the executive homes off Bingley Road, Heaton.

A neighbour, who was leaving his home, heard one of the contractors shout for help and described how he saw the horrified man try to pull his colleague out of the trench.

The witness, who did not want to be named, said: “It all just happened too quickly, in seconds. The earth caught his friend, he didn’t have a chance. He was trying to grab his arm and run with him along the trench to get him out but he couldn’t do it.”

He said he saw another man who had been in the digger scramble up to the trapped man and try to scrape earth away from his covered head. “He managed to clear his face, then he was trying to dig with a shovel. We were all ringing 999,” he added.

Urban Search and Rescue teams from West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service were joined by Yorkshire Ambulance Service’s specialist Hazardous Area Response Team (HART).

Police closed off Bingley Road from the junction with Haworth Road as appliances and specialist equipment lined the road.

One of the neighbours told how contractors had been on site for the past couple of days to sort out a drainage problem. The houses on the West Royde development have been built for about two years.

“The police told us to close our blinds out of respect for the lad. He was a nice lad, I’d only been speaking to him the other day,” said another neighbour.

Councillor Imdad Hussain (Lab, Heaton), who also lives at West Royde, said: “It’s a terrible, terrible accident and a reminder to all of us how frail we are. My heart goes out to his family.”

Urban search and rescue workers backed by other firefighters carried in lengths of wood to shore up the collapsed trench on either side. Council workers from the Highways Department were also called on to drag overhanging asphalt away from the area to make it safe so the HART team could get to the casualty.

Mr Lancaster’s family, including his father Charles and brother Jon, arrived at the scene during the earlier part of the rescue bid.

Shortly after 3pm Mr Lancaster senior was escorted away shaking his head as waiting relatives rushed to him.

Floodlights were used to help rescue workers continue their efforts to free the body. Gas and electricity to nearby properties had to be cut. Shortly before 6.30pm police confirmed rescuers had managed to retrieve the body.

Last night a West Yorkshire Police spokesman said: “We can confirm the body of a 23-year-old local man has been recovered from the trench. It is believed the man had been working in the trench at the time of the incident. Inquiries are ongoing.”

The Health and Safety Executive has been informed and is carrying out investigations.