A Chinese girl was rescued after her arm was stuck in a pool drain for three hours.

The curious youngster, 6, had been swimming with her parents at the Baan Nern Khao Resort in Pattaya, Thailand, when her left arm was sucked in by the recirculation pipe on August 7.

Sawang Boriboon rescue volunteers arrived at the scene an hour after receiving the report at 8 am.

However, they first had to drain the pool, then drill through the concrete surrounding the pipe. The pipe was successfully extracted, but a PVC section was still encasing the girl's blood-swollen arm.

She was seen wailing in fear as rescuers cut open the piece of plastic. The mission took over three hours, and the girl was taken to a hospital for treatment.

Local media reported that the accident was caused by a missing cover on the suction pipe, which pulled the girl in as she was swimming nearby.