Hero locals jumped into the sea to save a drowning pig that fell from a ferry.

Pier porters were loading the hog onto the ship when it slipped off the ramp and plunged into the water in Guimaras, the Philippines.

Footage shows the Good Samaritans working together to extract the struggling animal.

Three of the volunteers floated in the water to tie a rope around its body while their friends helped pull it from above.

Passenger Cherald Padojenog said: 'It was so hot that day. The porker was agitated and did not want to board the boat.'

The men successfully took the 60kg swine to a side stairway, but it resisted them.

Soon after, they were able to haul it back to higher ground and return it to its owner unharmed on March 28.

The impromptu rescue mission happened on an island in Guimaras, where transporting livestock by sea is common.