The rescuer descends well to save the trapped owl


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Presseportal.de

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The fire service posted these photos on Facebook

A rescuer in northern Germany pulled an owl caught from a 131 ft (40 m) deep well in a dilapidated castle, after descending ropes.

A local heard the distressed eagle owl from the well on Saturday and alerted police.

The Bad Segeberg fire service pumped oxygen into the well and established a rappelling platform, after failing to attract the owl to a baited bag.

The young bird is now safely in the hands of a local bat sanctuary.

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Presseportal.de

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The well was dug out of the rock when a medieval castle was built there.

Bad Segeberg is a city north of Lübeck and is famous for the Kalkberg, a huge gypsum rock that is topped by the ruined medieval castle.

The eagle owl rescue involved a team of 12 firefighters, plus a six-member volunteer technical team and two employees from the nearby bat center, the fire service reported (in German).

They arrived at the bird just in time, while a probe went down to the well indicated that there was little air inside. They used a powerful light and a telescope to locate the owl, before sending a rescuer with a breathing apparatus.

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Presseportal.de