Pensioner ends up in a hole lot of trouble

A pensioner was trapped upside down in a hole for four hours - finally being rescued by a passing postman who saw his feet sticking out.

Albert Hughes, 70, was adjusting the water flow of the sprinklers in his front garden when he fell head first into the hole which houses the water meter.

Passing postwoman Janelle Maury was delivering letters when she saw his boots and heard his muffled cries for help.



"His feet were at ground level but that was all I could see. When I was closer I could see he was down there," said Janelle.

She immediately called the emergency services who rushed to the scene. Initially the fire service tried to pull Albert out by hand, but eventually had to use a tripod.

They attached a rope and straps to his feet and winched him out of the pit at his home in Spokane, Washington state.

Albert, who was conscious throughout the ordeal, was taken to hospital but released uninjured.