Police say they have rescued a 17-month-old boy three hours after he fell into a three-meter (nearly 10-foot) shaft in western Germany.

Rescue workers were called on Monday afternoon after the boy lifted a cover from the empty conduit while playing with his brother and fell inside the shaft.

German and U.S. military police helped oversee the operation in the village of Erzenhausen, which is near the United States' Ramstein Air Base.

Fire personnel used a small excavator to uncover the conduit as far as possible and then opened it up to free the toddler. The child was taken to a local hospital for observation and reported to be uninjured.