Elvis the cob rescued from mud pit by fire services

Elvis, a 14hh Welsh cob, had a lucky escape from a sticky situation when he sunk into a mud pit last week (Wednesday, 20 July).

The three-year-old escaped from his paddock, in Allesley, near Coventry, before wandering into nearby scrubland and getting stuck.

Owner Margaret Hill, 59, followed the sound of whinnying to find him struggling to keep his nose above the surface.

The West Midlands Fire Service were alerted and sent a specialist technical rescue team to extract the pony from the 20-metre square mud pit.

One member of the rescue team, James Halton, jumped into the bog next to Elvis.

He cleared away mud from around Elvis and fitted strops under his stomach and around his front legs.

Over the next three hours the 10-strong team, assisted by back-up from the Coventry fire station, slowly winched him out of the bog by hand.

Mrs Hill said: “I cannot praise the crews enough for what they did. I didn’t think there was any chance they’d manage to pull him out alive but they did.

“They were absolutely brilliant and I am extremely grateful to them.”

Vij Randeniya, chief fire officer, said: “People think we just put out fires and respond to road accidents, but this incident has helped to show that we do much more.”

Following his ordeal Elvis was given a course of antibiotics and treatment for conjunctivitis, and is said to be doing well.

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