British Columbia has experienced some biblical downpours recently, leading to flooding across the Canadian province. As a result, Merritt was one of the towns affected by floodwaters, fast currents and freezing cold.
Since the town has a lot of farmland, some of its residents, Jerry McCauley and Connie Joe, have found themselves in a nightmare situation: 29 of their horses are trapped in one of the hay fields by floodwaters. .
It happened overnight, and when they went out in the morning to check it out, they were shocked and horrified to find their horses surrounded by what looked like a river. The horses were panicking, unable to get to higher ground, but they weren’t about to abandon their horses to the fate of freezing.
They reached out to Henry Chillihitzia, a loader operator and former bull rider, for help. Chillihitzia immediately rushed to the farm to help get all 29 horses out of the dangerous flood water. They did it with the help of motorboats, tractors, and of course, some good Samaritans.
According to a Interview on CBC RadioThe seasoned cowboy is no stranger to herding animals while on horseback, but doing it on a motorboat is definitely a first-timer! It took 4 hours and a lot of dedication, but in the end, all 29 horses were brought to safety.
Like him explained to CBC RadioAt first, they tried to wrap the horses on horseback as usual, but quickly realized that the water was too deep and fast-flowing. That’s when they switched to using motorboats as their second choice.
They had a lot of trouble at first because they had to convince the horses to swim to safety. They try and try, and eventually the whole herd dives in and swims to higher ground.
Chillihitzia shared some early videos of the rescue, writing on Facebook, “Still trying to get the horses to move but they won’t. I’ll give it another shot, the new boat engine is on its way. “
After the rescue mission was completed and all 29 horses were safe, he returned to social media to update the happy news: “I am crying tears of joy because we have brought the horses back. out of the water onto dry land, all the horses took over, thank god. It’s urgent.”
After the rescue, Chillihitzia shared about the experience in an interview, calling it an emotional moment at the right time.
He said: “I have been suffering from a tumor in my throat for the past time, so my emotions are quite high. And I own horses myself, so they’re like my kids, right? It was my first time doing it on a boat. I know if we didn’t do anything then, yes, my heart would probably break into two billion pieces. “
Also updating the internet on the condition of the rescued horses was McCauley’s stepdaughter, who Written, “All is well, no more shaking, and the belly is full of hay!” she writes. “A big thank you to everyone who was out there all day in the rain doing everything they could to save them!”
If you want to listen to Chillihitizia’s full interview with CBC Radio, click here.
