Sheep rescued after 10 days trapped in a mine shaft

A Welsh mountain rescue team has hauled a sheep to safety after it was trapped in a mine shaft for 10 days.

The Aberglaslyn Mountain Rescue Team was called in by North Wales Police when the sheep farmer raised the alarm. A team of 10 volunteer rescuers arrived at the steep, rocky terrain on hill land near Nantlle, in Gwynedd, on 5 July.

A spokesman for the team said the first concern was that any activity might scare the sheep and force it further into the shaft, making rescue more difficult. Working quietly, co-ordinators hatched a plan to extract the sheep using a full-rope system and anchors to allow two team members to descend into the shaft.

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The most difficult moment in the three-hour operation came when the ewe climbed up a sheer rock face to evade its rescuers. For a while it was in a precarious situation, but the animal was coaxed down and caught, the spokesman said.

The ewe was then hobbled and put into a builder’s sack before it was hauled up the shaft to safety. The team opted to leave the ewe in the bag, where it was content, and carried it down the hillside to the owner’s truck.

Although the ewe was in good health, it had lost a lot of condition. There was nothing for it to eat in the rocky mineshaft and it would have starved if left, the spokesman said.

“To us it is a life, and so worth saving. Locals were aware the animal was trapped and in distress, so we deemed it was prudent to go and help.”

© Rogan Chester

It was also a chance for the team to hone its skills for future rescues and give something back to the farming community, the spokesman added.

“Farmers often help us out when we have to carry kit to the tops of hills, so it was good to return a favour.”