London - It was the perfect moment to propose – on bended knee in Central Park during a romantic break in New York.
But shortly afterwards, John Drennan’s gesture had gone down the drain.
The ring had slipped off fiancee Daniella Anthony’s finger and fallen through a grate in Times Square.
The couple’s efforts to find it failed and they had to return to the UK without the diamond and platinum sparkler.
Now, though, thanks to a worldwide social media blitz by the NYPD, the pair and the ring are set to be reunited.
The couple, from Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, were celebrating ten years together with the trip to the Big Apple when Mr Drennan, 36, popped the question and Anthony began wearing the ring, which was too big for her finger.
Drennan told the BBC: "We were walking back to the hotel. I can still visualise the ring. Bouncing once … bouncing twice and then it was gone."
The couple called police who lifted the grate, but a two-hour search failed to locate the ring. CCTV footage showed Anthony, 34, holding her head in her hands. "It was the worst moment of my life," she said.
The devastated pair didn’t think to leave their names with police – leading to the NYPD Twitter campaign to find them after recovering the ring on Sunday. Drennan was already planning to buy a replacement when a friend told him the news after landing in the UK.
He tweeted to the NYPD: "I cannot thank you enough, although I will try." Anthony said: "We are so thankful to everyone – especially the New York Police Department and everyone who shared our story."
Drennan added: "I want to clarify that I did not propose over a grate … that’s where we lost it."