For the miners in Phalaborwa, South Africa, it’s just another day as they make their way to work.
Once they get there, however, the day is suddenly no longer ordinary at all. There is someone lying in one of the pits who definitely doesn’t belong there.
At first glance, it’s just a very strange lump
At first, the men only see something gray. A kind of roundish lump is sticking out of the shallow water in the pit, and this supposed lump is really big.
For a moment, the workers stare at the huge gray something in disbelief as they try hard to figure out what it could be.
After all, a rock can’t just suddenly appear in the pit. Could it?
No, and rocks don’t breathe either. The men have just clearly seen the gray giant breathing.
So it’s not a strange lump, but a living being.
Now the men immediately realize who is lying there: a hippopotamus.
Rescue of a giant
Even if the unusual sight has now found an explanation, the working day is no longer normal. Because the animal is clearly not lying in the pit for fun.
It has probably lost its way and got stuck in the mud. As it is unable to free itself, its life is in danger.
The workers are unable to help the huge hippo themselves, but they call animal rescue.
A whole group of helpers arrive, including members of the Phalaborwa Natural Heritage Foundation and Dr. Rita Piso from Mangata Wildlife Veterinary Services.
Piso first sedates the hippo with a tranquilizer dart, because even if it is helpless and clumsy, it is still a wild – and huge – animal.
The rescuers then lift the animal, which weighs several tons, out of the pit using a front loader and manoeuvre it onto a truck.
Safely stored, the hippo is now taken to the place where it belongs: the Olifants River, which is part of the Kruger National Park’s river system.
Joyful and surprisingly agile, the gray giant jumps off the truck and dives into the clear water.
The rescuers are positive about the hippo’s future:
„He’s a big bull and has a very good chance of success. There is a very real possibility that he hasn’t had contact with another hippo for some time and we expect he will be very happy if he comes across some cows in the area.“
So the adventurous excursion came to a happy end. We wish the hippo all the best.
Source: The Dodo
