A horrified mother has told how she watched her young daughter being hauled 25 feet into the air after she grabbed on to an airport escalator handrail.

Nasrat Butt said the two-year-old had been toying with the moving rubber handrail as they sat on a departure lounge bench at Birmingham International Airport.

She blamed the incident because the seats were positioned directly in front of the escalator, within easy reach of the playful youngster.

And after hearing her concerns, airport chiefs have confirmed they had removed the bench while an investigation takes place.

The family had gone to see off relatives bound for a trip to Pakistan. Mrs Butt sat with her four children while her husband Tahir had gone to the departures desk.

Mrs Butt, of Wesley Grove, West Bowling, Bradford, said: "I was sitting on the seat with Nabeelah and my other children. I could feel her playing beside me so I knew she was okay.

"Then, for a second, I couldn't feel her and turned around. To my horror I saw her hanging from the outside of the escalator, her feet dangling down."

Mrs Butt, 33, grabbed out for the youngster but she was already out of reach.

"It was the most frightening and worst moment of my life. Nabeelah was close to the top of the escalator which was about 30 feet high. She was literally seconds away from tragedy."

Mrs Butt added: "If I pressed the emergency stop button it could have jolted her off and dropped her to her death.

"If she hung on, she would have become caught in the machinery at the top.

"Thankfully, there was a woman on the escalator who leaned over and grabbed her. She handed her back to us and then was gone. I just had time to thank her and then she disappeared. She was like an angel."

A spokesman for Birmingham Inter-national Airport said: "We are taking this matter seriously and will be responding to Mrs Butt when an investigation has been carried out.

"In the meantime, as an added precaution the seat in question has been removed."