Swan stuck fast in frozen river

A swan had to be rescued by firemen after it fell asleep in an icy river - and woke up to find its feet had frozen solid.

German Hannes Langer, 35, spotted the swan trapped at the edge of the river Aue in Horneburg, Germany, while out walking his dog and raised the alarm.

He said: "I wondered why it didn't fly off when my dog spotted it and started barking - then I saw that it was actually frozen solid in the ice."



Police who turned up were unable to get near enough to free the swan and called the fire brigade - which sent eight firemen to save the trapped bird. The swan was eventually freed unharmed but there were still several injuries.

Fire Brigade spokesman Martin Forster said: "Several of our men were bitten by the swan which didn't seem to be particularly grateful for the help.

"Once we had checked the bird was OK we let it go - and it swam off without any problems."