Police in Spain are hunting for a man who left his lover down a well when she fell in as they had sex on Friday.

The pair, who had met earlier that night in Ciudad Real, did not realise that the wooden cover on the hole had slipped when things started to get steamy, the e reported.

The man fled from the scene when 21-year-old Edelia Aponte fell 15ft into the hole and plunged into the water below her, El Crisol de Ciudad Real reported.

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After spending half an hour in the water, she was rescued when an anonymous person called the police to report that a woman had fallen into a well.

Ms Aponte was then sent to hospital where she was treated for hypothermia.

"It could have ended in tragedy,’ said fire service spokesman Leni Portillo. "Luckily, she could swim and she wasn’t knocked out as she fell."

Police are now eager to speak to Ms Aponte’s companion, who could be charged with failing to give help to somebody in need of assistance.