A village fete came to a stand-still after a fire engine got stuck in mud.

Karen Blown attended the Walton-on-Hill pageant on Saturday, May 19 as she has done for the last three years - but was drawn to an altogether different attraction this time.

Following weeks of rain a fire engine, parked up at the fete for children to sit in, sank into the ground and was unable to move.

It took the combined effort of a team of policemen, soldiers, firemen and a massive truck to finally pull it free. Ms Blown said: "Every year children dress up and parade through Walton Village with a fire engine following behind.

"After the parade, the fire engine is parked up for children to have a go on. It got stuck in the mud as it was very boggy due to all the rain and just couldn’t be moved.

"A Land Rover, an ambulance response vehicle, tried to pull it out but the rope snapped. The huge, articulated army truck then had to come down and manoeuvre into a tight spot and the soldiers used a huge winch to get it out.

"All the soldiers were around the fire engine, as well as the policemen. All the forces were mucking in together and there was a big round of applause when they got it out."

Ms Blown said the fire engine’s dramatic escape was an exciting attraction at the event, which also included a merry-go-round, tombola, raffle and pony rides.