A pair of Leighton fire-fighters braved sub-zero temperatures on Saturday morning to rescue a terrified and exhausted pony that had spent the night trapped in the frozen River Ouzel near the Grove Lock, Leighton.

The piebald pony had wandered into the stream during the night and had become firmly stuck in about 4ft of water when it froze around him.
He was spotted the next morning by a passer-by who raised the alarm. Two firefighters donned dry-suits to hack their way through the ice to reach the stranded animal.

They gave him hay and eventually led the animal out of the water only for it to collapse with cold and exhaustion on the bank.

A brigade spokesman said: "We were putting a sling around it to help it up the bank when it summoned up his last ounce of energy, scattered fire-fighters who were trying to help him, and made it back into his field.

"He was shivering and possibly in shock but he was given a rub down and covered in a blanket before being left in the care of the RSPCA."