Leopard trapped in well climbs up roughly made ladder dropped in by rescuers

A bedraggled leopard that fell into a water-filled well sprinted to safety after climbing up a roughly-made ladder dropped in by rescuers.

The exhausted leopard was struggling to keep its head above water as it desperately tried to escape the well before villagers heard it roar and came to the rescue.

Staff from the Charamala range, with the help of police and Rairakhol fire personnel, saved the leopard from certain death in the well near Hindol ghat, in Odisha's Sambalpur district, India.

Rescuers initially lowered a wooden plank, tied to a rope at both ends, into the well to help the feline stay afloat.

A wooden ladder was then lowered down and the grateful leopard climbed up it before sprinting away into the forestation.