Horses rescued from flooded field in Leicestershire

Volunteers with a boat managed to get two horses to safety

A number of horses have been rescued from a flooded field in Leicestershire.

Members of the public responded to a social media appeal about stranded animals in Little Moor Lane near Barrow-Upon-Soar.

The fire service said it was alerted at 16:45 GMT on Wednesday to animals in distress and specialist crews guided one mare and one foal to safety.

But unconfirmed reports suggest two animals had died before help arrived on the scene.

The fire service said a number of other animals were left in the field in an "area of safety" after being checked over by a vet.

Members of the public gathered to offer blankets, food and other equipment for the horses

They had been told two horses had died, they said, but could not confirm this.

A spokesman added: "All our available water rescue teams with specialist equipment were initially committed elsewhere to deal with life-risk incidents.

"We have received a high number of calls for flooding-related incidents across the county over the last couple of days.

"Loughborough Station and Birstall Station attended the incident, followed by Southern Station, the water rescue technicians."

'Really struggling'

Clare Pittaway, a horse owner from Loughborough, said she was alerted by a friend on social media.

"We went out on a boat to find them, they couldn't be seen from the road.

"These weren't big animals and some were really struggling.

"One just had its head out of the water, it was stuck in a bush and you just couldn't see it until you got close.

"We got it to the side and it could hardly walk.

"I'm amazed it survived but I've been told it is doing okay."

She said the number of people who had offered help and brought supplies was "amazing".

Police confirmed they had spoken to the owner about the incident.