View this post on Instagram A post shared by Dorset & Wiltshire FRS (@dwfirerescue)
Subscribe | UPI Odd Newsletter Subscribe
Firefighters in England had to disassemble a wooden bridge to rescue a horse after the animal’s rear legs fell through.
Personnel from the Bridport Fire Station were the first on scene when the equine’s owner summoned rescuers to the West Dorset bridge. Advertisement
They were soon joined by a technical rescue team from Weymouth Fire Station, and they set about coming up with a rescue plan.
“Unfortunately, due to the location and type of entrapment, standard lifting equipment wasn’t a viable option nor was the use of lifting strops under the horse,” the Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service said on Instagram.
The rescuers first attempted to build a makeshift platform under the horse to allow it to stand, but this plan was abandoned after initial failures.
A local farmer brought a tele-handler to the scene, and it was used to support the back of the bridge while the rescue teams removed the floor and supports behind the horse in the hopes of lowering the structure to where the horse could touch the ground. Advertisement
“Crews tried multiple times to get the horses legs and the bridge in the correct position to assist the horse out, but unfortunately the horse reared up and fell further through the bridge and was now almost in a vertical position,” officials wrote.
The rescuers ended up making a bed of hay bales under the horse and lifting the bridge so it could fall the rest of the way through the structure and make a soft landing.
“After approximately four hours the horse was freed and back up on its legs,” the post said. “A ramp was then made and the horse guided to a place of safety where it was checked over by the vet and found to have only suffered from a few scrapes and bruises.”
