Police officers used a metal pole and a paperclip to help a couple retrieve their engagement ring after it fell down a sewage drain.

The officers from the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police were on patrol when they heard a woman saying she had lost her ring down a sewer.

As they walked down 16th Street, Sargeant Andrews Robinson and Officer Kyle Briggs decided to stop and help the young woman.

The officers fabricated a device that consisted of a metal pole - found on the street - masking tape and a paperclip attached to the end.

A video, released by the police, shows one of the officers slowly pulling the metal pole and the ring attached to it out of the drain.

The Pittsburgh Police Bureau said: "The officers overheard a woman and her fiance' saying she had lost her ring down a sewer that had a tiny hole in the middle."

"The sergeant who was there said it was a "one in a million shot" that it came off her finger and went into the hole."

"We don't know the person's name. She and her fiance' were very thankful, jokingly invited them to the wedding, and then drove off in a vehicle with out-of-state plates."