AN 11-YEAR-OLD boy had to be rescued by firefighters after he became trapped in a hay bale near Stamford Bridge.

Firefighters from Pocklington and Market Weighton, including retained crews, and a pump from North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue were called to the scene on the A166 near Garrowby Bridge just before 7.30pm yesterday.

There they discovered the shocked youngster wedged in the middle of the bale.

During the 90-minute rescue the boy was pulled free by two officers using a ten-metre ladder.

He was taken by ambulance to York District Hospital because he had something caught in his eye but it is not thought he was seriously hurt.

One of the firefighters said: "I believe he was playing on a haystack and he fell right through the middle of it.

"It must have been about ten or 11ft high and he was stuck in between it.

"The boy was in shock and we took him to York District Hospital for his own safety, but I think he was all right."

Sub Officer Nick Granger, of Humberside Fire Brigade, said: "Thankfully this is a minor incident, but we have had children crushed to death by bales and wood, so this is a warning for children and parents to be extra vigilant."

Updated: 11:10 Tuesday, September 11, 2001