Skip to main content

Digger rescue

Staff at a game reserve in South Africa responded in a rather unconventional manner when they spotted a black rhino in distress. The animal had wandered into a dried up watering hole, but then proved unable to extricate itself from the deep mud. The team from the game reserve brought in a backhoe loader to help the animal. The machine was used to dig a way through the soft ground to the rhino, which was then able to scramble free, although it did try to headbutt the digger bucket when it came close. Other o
March 23, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
Staff at a game reserve in South Africa responded in a rather unconventional manner when they spotted a black rhino in distress. The animal had wandered into a dried up watering hole, but then proved unable to extricate itself from the deep mud. The team from the game reserve brought in a backhoe loader to help the animal. The machine was used to dig a way through the soft ground to the rhino, which was then able to scramble free, although it did try to headbutt the digger bucket when it came close. Other options such as attempting to drag the animal free using a rope and tranquilising it with a dart gun had been considered but quickly discounted as being impractical. It was not available for comment afterwards.

Related Content

  • Skidmarks: Hot Sauce
    February 25, 2020
    Our Skidmarks page is highly rated by readers. Your input could help make this page even more entertaining. If you come across any amusing road-related stories or pictures email me at [email protected]
  • Bikers and animals
    May 10, 2016
    In the US a kindhearted motorcyclist put her life at risk when she saw a kitten fall out of a vehicle while she waited at the traffic lights at a busy intersection. The woman rider ran forward from her motorcycle, gesturing at vehicles to stop so as to prevent the ginger kitten from being run over. The woman handed the kitten to a passerby before returning to her motorcycle and moving it to the side of the intersection. She then collected the animal and has since taken it home, renaming it Skidmarks.
  • Learning record
    June 4, 2019
    Learning record A young driver in Germany managed to be banned from driving a mere 49 minutes after passing his test. Perhaps in jubilation at having passed the test, and no longer having to rely on his friends or ‘dad’s taxi' for transport, the 18 year-old driver inadvisedly pressed pedal to metal. Officers in the town of Hemer, near Dortmund, used a laser unit to determine the vehicle’s speed, seeing that it was travelling at 95km/h in a 50km/h zone. Perhaps he was trying to show his driving skills to hi
  • Case's latest 400 Series 3 range
    July 17, 2012
    With the latest 400 Series 3 range Case says it is offering a competitive line-up comprising five radial lift skid steers, three vertical lift models and four compact tracked loaders. Lifting capacities range from 680-1,750kg with power outputs from 44.7-67kW. The 400 Series 3 machines feature a new cab with a 7% increase in headroom and a 6% increase in lap-bar width for improved comfort. Depending on the model, the machines also benefit from a 20-80% larger frontal glass area, boosting visibility. A foot