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Towing company called to move unusual cargo from barn cellar in Virginia, photos show

The situation required “thinking outside the box,” the fire department said.
The situation required “thinking outside the box,” the fire department said. Galax Fire Department

A Virginia towing company got an odd call from the local fire department on Oct. 8 — and it had nothing to do with a vehicle.

A cow had collapsed into a 7-foot-deep cellar in a barn in Galax, and needed to be pulled out.

The Galax Fire Department and animal rescue officials arrived at the barn just before noon to find the several-hundred-pound cow stuck inside the cellar, the fire department said on its Facebook page.

The fire department called a nearby towing company, which used its equipment to strap in the cow and lift it out of the cellar, lowering it to safety nearby.

The rescue was finished within an hour, according to the fire department.

“Thank you Galax Fire Department and everyone else who assisted in the rescue,” Keri Hodger commented under the fire department’s Facebook post. “Our big guy is doing fine with just a few scratches. We are so grateful for everyone’s assistance.”

Galax is about 100 miles southwest of Roanoke.

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This story was originally published October 10, 2022 at 1:46 PM with the headline "Towing company called to move unusual cargo from barn cellar in Virginia, photos show."

Alison Cutler
mcclatchy-newsroom
Alison Cutler is a National Real Time Reporter for the Southeast at McClatchy. She graduated from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University and previously worked for The News Leader in Staunton, VA, a branch of USAToday.
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