Trapped Asfordby swan rescued by RSPCA officer

The alarm was sounded by 63-year-old Main Street resident, Beryl Devereaux, who noticed the young bird in distress close to its normal habitat, a stretch of the River Wreake.

She was concerned the swan did not seem to have enough room to take off to fly over the seven-foot-high chain-link fence and so called the RSPCA for help.

Animal rescuer, Inspector Herchy Boal, attended the scene and could see the bird was in good health and moving, and that it was obviously looking for a way out.

She contacted Severn Trent for assistance and they sent a worker to give access to the pumping station.

Once inside, Insp Boal was able to safely catch the bird and place him in a swan bag before walking back to the river and releasing him back to his family nearby.

A relieved Beryl said: “We first noticed the swan in the pumping station the day before and kept an eye on him but we soon realised he was struggling to fly free and was walking around the perimeter fence so we reported the matter to the RSPCA as we were worried for the bird’s welfare.

“It was great to see him getting rescued and being returned to his family.

“I just hope he has learned his lesson and won’t be flying in that direction again.”

Insp Boal commented: “I’d like to say a huge thank you to Beryl for noticing the swan’s predicament because if he had gone unnoticed he could have become weak and starved.

“He was a young swan so was probably exploring while flying and found himself trapped in the area as there wasn’t enough room to take-off over the high fence.

“We rely on the general public to be our eyes and ears and report animals in need when they spot them and I would like to thank Severn Trent for promptly opening up the site so we could do the rescue and it was very rewarding for us all to see the swan fly happily back to his home.”