AN eight-year-old boy had to be rescued by firefighters after getting his leg stuck in a tree in Radcliffe.

The youngster was climbing trees in a woody area in Darbyshire Street, off Spring Lane, when he got stuck at about 2pm yesterday.

He was trapped around five foot in the air with his leg wedged between the fork of two branches.

The boy was surrounded by friends who had tried to pull him free but after 20 minutes an adult passer-by called the fire service.

Firefighters from Whitefield attended the scene, releasing the boy using a hydraulic spreader which is more usually used to extract people from car accidents.

This spread open the branches, so the boy could wiggle free, but then let them move back without causing any damage to the tree.

Tony Wellock, Whitefield watch manager, said: “We usually use a hydraulic spreader if we are needed in the event of a road traffic collision, but it worked very effectively in this instance.

“The youngster was a bit upset but after he was pulled out of the tree he soon recovered, and was playing with his friends again in no time.”

The boy suffered some minor bruising and redness to his knee and an ambulance was called as a precaution.

The passer-by who called the ambulance, who did not wish to be named, said she was alerted to the situation because her son was playing in the trees with the boy who became trapped.

She said: "He was very upset because he had been trapped in the tree by the leg for about 20 minutes, so I called the fire brigade.

"As soon as the firefighters got him down he was absolutely fine. He was one of three boys — including my son — who had all been playing in the trees together."

A spokesman for North West Ambulance Service confirmed a call was made at 2.07pm and a rapid response vehicle arrived on scene at 2.14pm.

The spokesman added: “A patient was checked over but there were no injuries and they did not require any treatment or hospitalisation.”