This is the heartwarming moment a baby elephant was rescued from a well after it toppled in while trying get a drink of water.

The four-month-old calf cries for help were noticed by locals who found the baby in a six-feet deep well in Ampara in the Eastern Province of Sri Lanka.

A rescue team were called after villagers raised the alarm and officials from the forest and wildlife department rushed to help the calf out of the well.

A baby elephant became stuck in a six-foot well while it was trying to take a drink

However they had some difficultly getting the baby elephant out of the well as some of its heard, including its mother, were standing guard.

In the footage, the officials can be seen digging the land around the well using a Backhoe machine and removing the upper cemented block of the well to get the elephant out from it.

Rescuers managed to haul the calf out of the well which had been guarded by a herd of elephants

A local villager, Samara Simha, said: ‘Elephants venture into the area to drink water from the wells.

‘The calf, part of a large herd, might had fallen into the well as the water level was beyond its reach.’

After five-hours of struggle, the forest and wildlife officials finally pulled the animal out from the well.

Footage shows rescuers then applying ointment on the calf’s injuries before it ran to its mother, who was standing nearby.

Both the mother elephant and the calf later ran towards the nearby forest.

After five-hours of struggle, the forest and wildlife officials finally pulled the animal out from the well

They washed the baby elephant down and put ointment on its body to soothe any injuries

Both the mother elephant and the calf later ran towards the nearby forest