[MSAR] Dutch Horse rescue
Jorene Downs
Jorene at CEOates.com
Fri Nov 3 18:10:21 EST 2006
>
> http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061103/ap_on_re_eu/netherlands_horses_9
>
> Dutch rescue succeeds in saving horses
> By PETER DEJONG, Associated Press Writer
>
> A herd of horses marooned on a lowland knoll for three days by rising
> floodwaters waded to safety on Friday, led by wranglers following an
> underwater path marked out by half-submerged stakes.
>
> The horses were neck deep at times and had to swim at some spots,
> especially
> the foals. But they began to canter as they neared the edge of the
> brackish
> water, and burst into a gallop once they reached solid land, apparently
> relieved at being able to stretch their legs.
>
> The plight of the herd of about 100 horses has gripped the Netherlands
> since
> a storm surge Tuesday night pushed sea water into the wilderness area
> outside the dikes of Marrum, a town 90 miles northeast of Amsterdam.
> Before
> they could be saved, 19 of the horses drowned or died of exposure. Several
> rescued by boat earlier in the week have contracted lung infections.
>
> With support from rescue workers on the knoll and a chain of small boats
> indicating the route, the four young women on horseback - riders from the
> town's Calvary Club - on Friday guided the remaining animals about 650
> yards
> to higher ground. All but one horse followed them without hesitation.
>
> "It worked, and it went off almost perfectly," said Jacob Prins, a
> firefighter from the nearby town of Hallum who helped in the operation.
>
> The remaining horse was led back later, escorted by firefighters on foot.
> They needed to attach a rope to its hindquarters to compel it to walk the
> final stretch. It collapsed after reaching shore, and was covered by
> blankets and attended by veterinarians.
>
> Prins said the horse that collapsed was taken to a warm stall, where it
> was
> expected to make a full recovery.
>
> "It was just exhausted," he said.
>
> The Dutch Agriculture Ministry ordered an investigation into whether
> either
> the horses' owners or the managers of the nature preserve where they were
> roaming should be held responsible for neglect or abuse.
>
> Marianne Thieme, leader of the Netherlands' Party for the Animals, said it
> was clear something went badly wrong, since the country's weather service
> had warned of possible flooding as early as Tuesday morning.
>
> "The most terrible thing is that the death and suffering of all these
> horses
> could have been prevented. When autumn comes, you know that if you keep
> animals outside the dikes you put them at great risk," she said.
>
> She said that the horses' owner has been accused of neglecting his animals
> in the past, and the nature reserve's managers had failed to enforce an
> Oct.
> 15 deadline for allowing animals to graze in the area.
>
> The storm had lifted the North Sea waters as much as 13 feet above normal.
> Three days later it was less than a 3 feet deep in most flooded fields,
> with
> pits up to 6 feet deep where they are crisscrossed with drainage channels.
> The channels, along with submerged barbed-wire fences, were difficult to
> see.
>
> Before the rescue mission, a veterinarian examined the horses and rescue
> workers gave them hay and fresh water to drink to raise their strength.
>
> Their rescue capped several days of drama.
>
> Dutch television and newspapers showed dramatic images of the horses
> huddled
> together, their backs to the wind whipping up small waves in water
> surrounding their isolated island.
>
> Marrum's fire department floated or ferried around 20 horses, including
> the
> smallest foals, to safety with the help of small boats on Wednesday. The
> Dutch army also tried to rescue the animals, but called off the operation
> when water levels began to recede, grounding pontoon boats.
>
> Marrum Mayor Wil van den Berg ruled out the use of helicopters for
> transporting the animals, as the noise might have panicked the animals and
> caused more to drown.
>
>
>
> Copyright © 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The
> information
> contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten
> or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated
> Press.
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