Horse rescued from well at Greenbank

Two Greenbank rural fire crews were called to a property on New Beith Road at Greenbank about 5pm, where a horse had fallen through an old, disused well that had been filled in.

Greenbank Rural Fire Brigade first officer Fabian Stangherlin said the horse was hanging onto the edge of the well with its front legs, trying to stop itself from slipping further in.

He said when his crews arrived it had stopped kicking and was in a state of shock.

"A vet was called and he came and sedated the horse so we could lift it out," Mr Stangherlin said.

"Once he had done that we went into action with our equipment, putting a sling around the horse and lifting it out of the well."

The horse was lifted out using a crane from Greenbank resident Kelvin Barham, who has also helped out with previous rescues.

Mr Stangherlin said the rescue itself only took about 20 minutes thanks to the rescue equipment and crane.

He said his brigade had performed many rescues with the equipment and it had proved invaluable in creating a safer and quicker way to rescue large animals.

"We knew what we had to do and the urban fire crew from Logan West that was there worked with us to make the rescue as smooth as possible," Mr Stangherlin said.

"Using the equipment is a safer, better and more professional way, rather than having a bunch of guys hanging off a rope."

Mr Stangherlin encouraged people who needed a large animal rescued to phone triple-0 and let them know Greenbank Rural Fire Brigade had the equipment to do it so he could be contacted.

"The owners also need to make sure a vet is there and also a crane to assist with lifting the animal," he said.