Bournemouth Air Festival: Missing engagement ring found by detectorist

Ms Midson said the search was like "looking for a needle in a haystack"

A woman who lost her engagement ring on a busy beach said she cried with relief when it was returned.

Chloe Midson and her fiancé Andrew Griffiths were at Bournemouth Air Festival on Sunday when they discovered the ring had slipped through Mr Griffiths' pocket and into the sand.

After combing the beach for hours, the couple had almost lost hope.

But when word reached metal detectorist Aaron Le Arn, he searched the area and found the ring in just 20 minutes.

The diamond engagement ring had been custom-made

The warm weather had caused Ms Midson's fingers to swell, so she removed her rings and placed them in her fiancé's pocket for safekeeping.

The Red Arrows were minutes away from flying overhead when the couple realised there was a hole in the pocket - and the three rings had fallen straight through it.

Ms Midson said all of the rings held sentimental value, but her engagement ring had been designed especially for her and they would "never find another one like it".

The couple, who have been engaged for a year, were watching the displays at the Bournemouth Air Festival

When an hour-long search on the beach returned two of the rings, but not the diamond engagement ring, Ms Midson turned to the Bournemouth Detecting Club for help.

After making contact, volunteer detectorist Mr Le Arn met the pair on the beach around 20:00 (BST) and started scanning an area west of Boscombe pier.

Ms Midson said: "He had been looking for about 20 minutes and I did start to give up hope that he would find it.

"But he found something and called me over - it was my ring!"

Mr Le Arn said he took on the challenge because "it feels good helping people"

Mr Le Arn said when he presented Ms Midson with her missing engagement ring, she burst into tears and hugged him.

"I felt so much relief, I just cried, honestly didn't think he would ever find it," Ms Midson said.

The couple plan to tie the knot in 2027.

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