A DOG which was trapped for up to three days in an underground drainpipe needed rescuing by firefighters.

The springer spaniel became trapped in a drainpipe underneath Oxford Road in Gerrards Cross on Thursday December 29 but was rescued on New Year's Day after another dog walker heard a noise coming from underground.

The dog had initially gone missing on the Thursday while out for a walk in the woods off Oxford Road with its owners, who mounted a poster campaign appealing for people to contact them if he was found.

A crew from Gerrards Cross fire station, led by High Wycombe Station Manager Danny Whitelock, brought him back to the surface during a 20 minute rescue operation.

Mr Whitelock said: "The pipe was wide where the dog entered it but became narrow further along. The crew quickly located a drain cover in the undergrowth and when they lifted it, there he was.

"He had his owners' telephone number on his collar and I contacted them to tell them the good news.

"He seemed in good shape and he eagerly drank some water while we waited for his owners to arrive. We didn't have a bowl, so we improvised and used a circular metal cap which fits on to the end of a hose."