Car rolls into Llangollen Canal at Pontcysyllte Aqueduct

Mr Williams was out for a walk with his girlfriend when he heard his car had gone into the canal

Unlucky motorist Tomos Williams has been left counting the cost after his car rolled into Llangollen Canal.

Police helped him recover the Toyota Avensis from the water near Pontcysyllte Aqueduct after its handbrake is believed to have failed, letting the car to roll down a slipway.

Mr Williams had been on a walk with girlfriend Jayne Roberts when told of the drama while in a canal-side pub.

He said it marked the end of a bad week after learning he could lose his job.

Going... Mr Williams's car rolls down the canal jetty

Gone... canal workers try to recover the vehicle

Mr Williams from Caerwys, near Mold, Flintshire, works at Flint-based ready meals firm Creative Foods, which announced it could close by May with the loss of 149 jobs.

"I've had the worst luck," he said.

Mr Williams said a fellow motorist who had parked near to his car heard a loud "snapping" sound which made him think the handbrake cable failed, allowing the car to roll into the water.

He said he returned to where it had been parked to find canal boat users fishing his possessions out of the water before the car was winched back on to dry land on Friday afternoon.

"I can see the funny side of it now," he added. "No one was hurt."

The car was taken to a recovery yard where Mr Williams said he expects checks will be made to establish what happened.

It took almost two hours to recover the car from the canal