Forty people worked together to rescue two horses that had been trapped in the mud for hours in Lebanon on Saturday.
Firefighters received a call around 2 p.m. about two horses stuck in the mud behind a farm. Crews determined the horses were stuck about 3/4 of a mile into the woods in a swampy area.
Resources from the Durham Animal Response Team and other pieces of fire apparatus were called to the area.
According to fire officials, vehicles including a UTV, a farm truck and a deuce and a half shuttled in close to 40 people along with the necessary ropes, wood, saws, plywood, rescue equipment, vet supplies, food and water.
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A roadway was cleared and a makeshift bridge was created using logs, cribbing, plywood and signs because the area was not accessible for equipment and manpower was required.
Once DART arrived, they set up their sled equipment with a goal of rolling the horses out of the mud and onto their sled device. The mud was about waist deep for the rescuers.
Officials said once the horses were on the sled, rescuers worked together to pull them over the makeshift bridge and up onto flat ground.
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The first horse was rescued in about 30 minutes. The second horse was reportedly more stuck in the mud than the first. The second horse was rescued in a little over 30 minutes.
A vet arrived and assessed both horses at the scene. The vet reported that both horses were in mild distress and one horse had been stuck in the mud for over seven hours.
Shortly after, both horses were warmed up and were able to stand up without issue. No injuries were reported.
In total, rescuers worked for about five hours to rescue the two horses.
