A large python stuck in the ground cracks of a school dormitory chasing a monitor lizard was rescued.

The 12ft-long snake slithered into the student dorm compound of Kamphaengphet Rajabhat University and fought with the 4ft-long lizard in Kamphaeng Phet province, Thailand, on June 14.

It followed the smaller reptile into the gaps on the concrete floor distorted by large tree roots but could not come out.

Footage shows the rescue operation as volunteers from the local fire rescue team used a sledgehammer to smash through the concrete and widen the crack.

When the python's body was revealed, it was dragged out of the space with a noose. It was unscathed from being trapped, but its prey did not survive.

University employee Pinyapat Chalaemchat, 44, said: 'The monitor lizard and snake come here to prey on cats, but they saw each other and fought. We called the rescue team to assist us as students live in the buildings.'

The reticulated python is found throughout Southeast Asia, where it lives in forests, swamps, canals, and even cities, causing conflict with humans. The species is one of the world's largest snakes and can eat humans, cats, dogs, birds, rats, and other snakes.

Meanwhile, Asian water monitor lizards normally live in canals, swamps, sewers and ponds in cities in Thailand. They feed on fish, snakes, frogs and scraps of food left by humans.