A HORSE rider escaped unhurt after his mount plunged 10ft into a water ditch.

Eight firefighters and a tractor were needed to free Amin Yacoub's five-year-old filly, Emily, from the ditch near Rindle Road, Tyldesley. Mr Yacoub, of Moss Farm, Tyldesley, managed to crawl free and dialled 999 on his mobile phone. But Emily had become wedged between two posts inside the ditch which firefighters had to saw through. Residents and firefighters then used a tractor to pull her free. Leigh Station Officer Geoff Thornley said: "It took brute force and over an hour to coax the strong horse out but it all ended well." No-one was injured in the incident at 8.15pm on Wednesday.