A man and woman have been found dead in a cave in the Yorkshire Dales.

Police say the bodies of the woman, 28, believed to from West Yorkshire, and a man, 33, of Darlington, were discovered by rescuers at 3.20am today.

The Cave Rescue Organisation, based at Clapham, began searching shortly after midnight after being contacted by North Yorkshire Police.

Police said the man's wife raised the alarm when he failed to return home.

The bodies are believed to have been found in an underground stream in Lower Long Churn, part of the 350ft deep Alum Pot caving system near the village of Selside in the parish of Horton-in-Ribblesdale.

Inspector Mike Thompson, of North Yorkshire Police, said: "We responded, along with the Cave Rescue Organisation, to a report a husband had not returned home. At 3.22am two bodies were found in Lower Long Churn."

Police say there are no suspicious circumstances. The names of the man and woman have not been released.

The cave system is thought to be particularly wet, with water pouring in after heavy rain.