Two cavers trapped underground by rising floodwater were lucky to escape alive.

The pair – a 61-year-old experienced caver and a work colleague in his 20s, making only his second trip underground – were found safe and well following a dramatic rescue operation lasting nearly 20 hours.

The two men entered Swinsto Pot in the Kingsdale system near Ingleton at around 11am on Sunday, but rainfall caused water levels to rise quickly, trapping them below ground.

The alarm was raised by a third man who had intended to join the trip – expected to take three-and-a-half-hours – but had arrived late.

He called the Clapham-based Cave Rescue Organisation (CRO) at 4pm when the two men had failed to resurface and a full team was mobilised to find them.

Twenty-seven rescuers were sent to the scene, but the search had to be abandoned at midnight because of the dangerously high water levels. The rescue operation resumed at 8.30am on Monday and the two cavers were located, sheltering from the flooding near the top of the final Swinsto pitch.

“They were very lucky,” said Sgt Angela Moorhouse, of Ingleton Police.

“Fortunately they managed to find a shelf away from the floodwater. The conditions were far from ideal.

“There is no doubt the rescuers risked their own safety. It was not looking hopeful.”

The two men, who were from Cheshire, were led to safety through Kingsdale Master Cave’s main entrance, emerging at about 11.30am.

Search leader Tom Redfern said: “We are just happy it ended successfully. You can never be certain especially when flooding is involved, so we are all relieved.”

Also on Sunday, CRO volunteers went to the aid of two other groups of cavers, reported trapped by flooding in Rift Pot at Masongill. One group was found making its way back over the moor and the other party was located negotiating the entrance crawl below the first pitch and was escorted to safety.