Elk saved from pool after heroic rescue effort

It took firefighters more than five hours hoist the 150kg calf back onto level ground, after which it scampered off into the forest to find its mother. 

 

"Maybe it would be crazy to use such a lot of money to save an elk from a swimming pool in another part of Europe, but Norwegians they love nature," said Goran Jorganovich, a photographer with Norway's TV2 network, who was one of the first journalists on the scene. 

 

"They sent two to three big fire engines. In some other parts of Europe, that would be for some great natural disaster, but here it was for a little elk."

 

The rescue was a matter of life-and-death for the frightened animal, as by early afternoon, the authorities had contacted the local official responsible for shooting and disposing of injured wildlife. 

 

"We saw that he had a big rifle with ammunition," Jorganovich said. "He said, 'we will try to save his life, but if it's not possible, we will have to shoot him'". 

 

A couple in Siggerud, a town in the Ski municipality, south of Oslo, found the elk in their pool when they woke on Sunday morning, and immediately contacted the fire department. 

 

The fire department had to wait for several hours as they waited for a vet to be found who could check the animal's health before it was lifted. 

 

Eventually, they decided to go ahead without a check-up and, after immobilising the animal with a net, hauled it out with a rope to the applause of the surrounding crowd. 

 

Here is a gallery of pictures showing the rescue from start to finish.