A TWO-YEAR-OLD boy was left battered and bruised after falling seven feet down a drain on Sunday.

Covered in mud and screaming, little Jaiden Fillbrook had to be fished out of a drain in Darlington’s South Park after enjoying a day there with his family.

The toddler had been walking alongside his mother, Deonne O’Donnell, when he plummeted down an open manhole.

The youngster was left with a number of bruises following the incident, which happened following a trip to the annual Dogs Trust fun day.

Ms O’Donnell said: “We were walking one minute then I looked around and he’d disappeared.

“My friend dragged him out. He was screaming his head off – he loves that park and now he’s saying he doesn’t want to go back, he was petrified.

“He had a lot of bumps and scratches and had to be taken to hospital to be checked over – he’s lucky he wasn’t badly hurt.

“I thought the worst when I realised what had happened – it shouldn’t have happened in the first place.”

Darlington Borough Council (DBC) said it was investigating the incident which they say stemmed from an act of vandalism.

However, Ms O’Donnell is criticising the authority for failing to act in a timely manner.

A spokeswoman said the council had acted following an official complaint on Monday morning.

However, Ms O’Donnell said she reported the incident immediately and contacted them a day later to formally complain.

She said: “I phoned that afternoon and was told it would be sorted, but I went back that night and it was still insecure.

“I saw them on Monday morning, they said it wasn’t their responsibility, it was the Highways Agency, then they said it was not theirs but the council’s.

“Nobody would accept responsibility – I don’t care who it belongs to, it should have been secured immediately to stop this happening to another wee one.

“The park is full of kids, it’s the summer holidays and they were passing the buck.”

A spokeswoman for Darlington Borough Council did not comment on the timescale but said: “It was an unfortunate accident caused by an act of vandalism after unknown youths lifted the manhole cover and left the drain uncovered.

“Unfortunately, no one spotted it until it was too late, but thankfully the youngster was not seriously hurt. “