Fire crews rescue pony stuck in river overnight

Fire crews have rescued a stranded pony who became stuck in a North Yorkshire river overnight.

Firefighters from Malton Fire Station were called out at about 08:00 BST on Thursday to reports of an animal in difficulty in the River Rye at Nunnington Bridge.

The pony, named Mags, is thought to have fallen into the river late on Wednesday and could not climb out without assistance.

Mags' owner Jane Wright and her 14-year old daughter thanked the fire crews, local vets and local residents who supported the rescue.

Ms Wright spotted Mags in the river as she was doing her daily checks of her ponies and called for assistance.

"My husband tried to get into the river to swim her to a shallower part of the water but she was too tired," she said.

Malton Fire Station and a local vet attended the incident, with a local farmer donating a telehandler to lift Mags out of the water while the pony was sedated.

"The whole village rallied to help us out," said Ms Wright.

Mags was freed at about 10:00 BST and is said to be recovering well with the help of antibiotics.

"Mags is the sweetest and gentlest pony I've ever had and she just trusted the people helping her," said Ms Wright.

"I'm so thankful to everyone who helped."

She added: "Mags means the world to me and my daughter and it has just been so heartwarming how the community helped us."

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