Woman in labour scooped up by digger to get her across flooded river

A pregnant woman and her husband had to resort to desperate measures after their village was cut off from the outside world by heavy flooding.

Thailand has been hit by flooding in recent weeks thanks to heavy rainfall as the country and its South East Asian neighbours enter their annual monsoon season.

Flash flooding hit the Lampang district over the weekend, causing a river to burst its banks and destroying a bridge.

The damaged bridge was the only connection the village of Mae Phrik had to the outside world, meaning its 150 households were stranded.

Local government officials were alerted on Saturday that a woman in the late stages of pregnancy was suffering from contractions and was likely to give birth in the near future.

A rescue plan was launched and after the water level reduced slightly, a backhoe was driven into the middle of the swollen river.

Incredible footage shows the heavily pregnant woman and her husband climbing into the loader bucket of the heavy machinery before they were safely transported to the other side of the river.

The couple were then taken on to hospital in the nearest town.

Several other stranded residents were also given a lift out of the village in the loader bucket, to prevent being stranded in their village.

The rainy season in Thailand has been particularly damaging this year, with severe flooding causing rivers to burst their banks and leaving homes and businesses submerged.

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