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| 'Lost' grey seal rescued from field in St Helens | |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| A grey seal found in the middle of a field in Merseyside has been rescued. | |
| The "distressed" sea mammal was found by a dog walker close to Newton Brook near Newton-le-Willows, police said. | The "distressed" sea mammal was found by a dog walker close to Newton Brook near Newton-le-Willows, police said. |
| Police, firefighters and animal rescue officers herded the seal with brooms and metal fences before it was safely "contained". | |
| The animal, found about 17 miles (27km) from the nearest coastline, is thought to have travelled up the River Mersey, before getting "lost". | |
| The British Divers Marine Life Rescue Service (BDMLR) will put the grey seal in a trailer before releasing it back into the Mersey. | |
| Rachael Fraser, from BDMLR, said: "We think he's come from the Mersey area, which is tidal, and he's come up the bank here and he's got lost. | Rachael Fraser, from BDMLR, said: "We think he's come from the Mersey area, which is tidal, and he's come up the bank here and he's got lost. |
| "It's very unusual." | "It's very unusual." |
| Seals are powerful animals and potentially dangerous, police said. They have advised members of the public to stay away from the area. | Seals are powerful animals and potentially dangerous, police said. They have advised members of the public to stay away from the area. |
| Steve Marsh, from BDMLR, said: "It's not an easy job certainly because they are large animals. | Steve Marsh, from BDMLR, said: "It's not an easy job certainly because they are large animals. |
| "They can be quite aggressive and we do have people in our charity that can actually handle those large seals, but in this instance we are probably going to have to be using the fire brigade to help out." | "They can be quite aggressive and we do have people in our charity that can actually handle those large seals, but in this instance we are probably going to have to be using the fire brigade to help out." |
| He said the fire service had a "good animal rescue team". | He said the fire service had a "good animal rescue team". |
| Grey seals | Grey seals |
| Source: The Mammal Society | Source: The Mammal Society |