Rescue Operation on serbian island is underway to move Livestock. Approximately 200 Cattle, calves and horses that have become stranded on Krcedin island in the River Danube, northwest of Belgrade, Serbia. Days ago, water rose sharply and, as a result the animals are trapped. They have no means to go back to the mainland.
Tuesday, with the temperature still rising and starvation imminent rescuers have already rescued about 60 of those animals but are race against time to save whatever is left of livestock.
Krcedinska Ada is the name of this island that lies about 3 kilometers from the border and around 50 miles upriver from Belgrade, which makes a rather hostile environment for those animals stranded here.
Late 2023 had an unusually mild weather which caused melting snow, and created a fast increase of water levels. However, recent change in the weather to snowfall and freezing temperature has raised more worries about survival of the animals.
With the situation worsening, farmers appealed for rescue of their livestock. It involved efforts by Serbian military teams, the emergencies department, the forestry agency, and local citizens to deploy a raft for transfer of animals. Two successful runs, where each one rescued about 30 animals, were carried out on Tuesday.
However, succeeding efforts encountered setbacks such as problems with a replacement raft and transporting these wild horses who were not used to human touch.
Environmental organization Eko Straza reported that the cattle were stranded for days and they had lost up to 50kg in weight. Cattle breeder Milenko Plavsic showed that already some of his animals died and the rest were in great danger.
The push to conclude the rescue mission has been increased because of cold temperatures as well as hunger that is going up among animals which have found themselves stranded.
There are challenges though, as the mission resume Wednesday with a new boat. Remaining animals can be safely evacuated, and further losses prevented if conditions are very uncomfortable.
