An elderly man who was taken ill on board a Mersey Ferries cruise had to be lifted off in a cage attached to a crane.
These pictures were taken by a passenger on board the Manchester Ship Canal cruise this afternoon.
Personnel from Runcorn Docks provided the crane and the cage to airlift the casualty to a waiting ambulance.
The passenger said: "We got grounded for an hour and a half in Runcorn at some salt factory while they offloaded a man into a cage attached to a crane because he was ill.
"They arranged an ambulance, a crane and cage."
A spokesperson for Mersey Ferries said: "The only way to remove the casualty from the vessel when it is on the canal, where there is no spot to berth, is to use a crane.
"There were a limited number of places where we can pull over, and a request was put in to Runcorn Docks for the crane, which is used to get people on and off shipping as it goes up and down the canal.
"It was not possible to deploy the gangway as it was too steep.
"This was a very rare occurrence."
A spokesperson for North West Ambulance Service confirmed they were called to Percival Lane in Runcorn at 12.30pm today after an elderly gentleman was taken ill and couldn't be got off the ferry via the gangway.
He was taken to Whiston hospital.
