Watch elephant get rescued from deep mud pit by villagers in China

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/watch-elephant-get-rescued-from-deep-mud-pit-by-villagers-in-china-10198479.html

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A wild Asian elephant has been rescued by villagers in China after it became trapped in a mud pit in the country’s southern province of Yunnan.

Local residents and police had to use ropes and sticks to pull the elephant to safety when it had found itself in trouble while walking on soft ground.

The elephant was nearly fully submerged in the mud when villagers and police found it on Monday morning, with the animal holding its trunk in the air so that it could breathe. Police said the mammal’s large frame caused it to sink into the soft mud as it searched for food and its attempts to climb out of the pit caused it to fall deeper into the mud.

To stop the elephant from sinking, the villagers placed planks under the animals back and attached ropes to its trunk and limbs before trying to pull the elephant out.

After three hours, the elephant was eventually freed.

In total, the rescue took 10 hours.

The elephant was initially too weak to stand-up after being saved but according to locals, it has now made a full recovery.