Mapusa Fire Crew saves cow from Well at Anjuna 

Mapusa Fire Crew saves cow from Well at Anjuna

Mapusa: A 4:41 AM distress call set off a race against time for the Mapusa Fire Station on Tuesday, after a cow plunged into a 30-foot open well near Dmello Hotel Anjuna and was left treading water in the dark. Leading firefighter R A Gaonkar reached the Deulwada spot by 04:59 HRS with his crew to find the worst-case scenario: no parapet wall, moss-slick laterite, and a terrified animal chest-deep in water.

With sunrise still an hour away, the team had to rely on headlamps, training, and nerve.Instead of rushing a descent, Gaonkar ordered a technical rig. Firemen erected a tripod, anchored a pulley system, and lowered a padded animal harness — a kit Mapusa Station now carries specifically for livestock falls. “Ropes alone can break ribs. The harness spreads the load,” Gaonkar explained.

To stop the cow from thrashing mid-lift, a firefighter in PPE went down with a local who knew the animal. The ‘calm-and-hold’ method, Gaonkar said, is key to night rescues.At 5:05 AM, five men began the haul. No talking, no jerks, only Gaonkar’s hand signals. They paused every 6 feet to reseat the straps. At 5:32 AM, the cow was out — drenched, shivering, but standing. The crew wrapped the animal in a salvage blanket and had locals feed it jaggery water while alerting the Pernem vet unit.

”This marks the third cattle-well rescue in Bardez since the monsoon began. “These old wells are death traps at night,” Gaonkar said.