EQUINE NEWS

Brilliant Fire Crew Save Jazz

FIREFIGHTERS worked for more than three hours to rescue a horse stuck in a slurry lagoon. Cornwall County Fire Brigade crews from Saltash and Bodmin, the latter bringing specialist lifting gear responded to the emergency call from dairy farmers Chris & Christine Ranson of Smeaton Farm, at Pillaton in South East Cornwall after they discovered their eleven year old showjumper, a dark bay mare called Phantoms Jazz, submerged in the pool with just her head visible. The horse was discovered on the morning of Sunday April 3rd after the Ransons 14 year old son Andrew said he could not find her. "Andrew came into the house and said he couldn't find Jazz.. He'd told me he couldn't find another of our horses, Marco, the previous day so I didn't take too much notice." Soon after breakfast my husband said the missing pony was in the slurry lagoon. You could see her head. We called the fire brigade for help and the Saltash crew were here within 15 minutes.

"They called for specialist lifting gear to be brought from Bodmin. A Vet, Miranda, came from Calweton surgery in Callington and sedated the horse.

Some of the firefighters wore breathing apparatus and special waterproof suits to carry out the rescue. They were absolutely brilliant, very positive and optimistic that they could rescue her.

They had to put a sling around her and then she was lifted up out of the water, and over the big bank which surrounds the lagoon.

After the rescue, the firefighters were offered cups of tea by the grateful Ranson family, and Phantoms Jazz was hosed down, dried off, covered in horse rugs and given a warm feed in a stable.

Jazz was very quiet and shaking, she had been heavily sedated three times during the rescue.

Afterwards the vet pumped her with antibiotics. She is improving now and we put her in the field again for the first time yesterday, bringing her in overnight," said Mrs Ranson on Tuesday.

"And she was keen to go out this morning."

Mr & Mrs Ranson have different theories about how the horse managed to escape but neither is certain how she found her way into the slurry lagoon, which is adjacent to the field she was in.

"Why she went off by herself we don't know. She loves jumping, and is very fast. We've piled hay up against the gate of the field she is in as a precaution now." Said Mrs Ranson

A spokesman for Cornwall County Fire Brigade said on Tuesday "Crews from Saltash and the rescue tender from Bodmin were mobilized on receipt of this call.

"On arrival crews found a horse that was stuck in a slurry pit. Crews set up equipment which included harnesses and lines and with the help of the owners vehicle, managed to rescue the horse, which was checked over by a vet who attended and pronounced the animal fit and well."

Story by Cornish Guardian