Terrifying ordeal sees dog walker rescued from sinking mud

The man, believed to be in his late 30s, was walking his dog in Hag Wood, near to Lennox Street, Worsthorne, on Monday afternoon when he became trapped in sinking mud.

Luckily the man was able to get a signal on his mobile phone and call 999. However, it took emergency services an hour to find him due to the remote nature of his location.

A specialist water and mud rescue crew from Nelson plus a fire crew from Burnley eventually found the man and pulled him out using a line. His faithful dog had stayed by his side during the ordeal.

Crew manager Gary Thorpe, from Nelson Fire and Rescue, said: "We had some difficulty finding the gentleman but we began by following the lay of the land from his directions.

"We kept calling out his name and eventually he heard us and called back. He was stuck up to his waist in thick mud. We have specialist inflatable walking platforms but didn't need them in the end. We put a line around him and pulled him out. It took us about 15 to 20 minutes.

"He was very calm and we walked him back to a waiting paramedic who checked him over. He definitely needed a good wash-off. Speaking to some locals they told us that the area is notorious for sinking mud.

"It was a very unsual call-out for us but thankfully one that had a happy ending."