Washington mudslide: Footage shows dramatic moment four-year-old boy is pulled from slide

Volunteer rescue workers waded in and pulled the boy and his father to safety

A helicopter rescuer snatches a four-year-old boy from the mudslide (Fox News Insider)

Video footage has emerged of the moment rescue workers saved a four-year-old boy trapped in mud and debris left hours after the Washington mudslide.

A helicopter crew can be seen hovering over the mud while a volunteer rescue crew wades in and pulls Jacob who remains calm during the ordeal, up the hill to safety.

Randy Fay, a helicopter rescue team coordinator for Snohomish County, told CNN they had no idea how he ended up there. "We have no clue how he ended up there by himself," Fay said. "(There were) no homes, no nothing."

His father and siblings have yet to be found.

The mudslide saw a huge chunk of hillside come crashing down through the remote town of Oso, around 55miles (90km) northeast of Seattle.

Authorities say they have a list of 176 people who remain unaccounted for, yet refuse to rule out all hope that some may have survived in air pockets within the mud and debris.

The official death toll remains at 16 after two more bodies were recovered on Tuesday, but officials said eight had been located which they have been so far been unable to retrieve.

At least 30 homes are believed to have been destroyed in the slide.