Oklahoma firefighters rafted 21 stranded cattle to safety in New Mexico
On a 15-day flood deployment, Oklahoma City and Tulsa task force crews dug a cow out of neck-deep mud with boat paddles and coaxed a bull and 20 cattle to trailers with grain. Everyone on the crews came home safe.

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Oklahoma City and Tulsa task force firefighters came home from a 15-day deployment in New Mexico floods, News9 reported. Among the jobs, they dug a cow out of neck-deep mud with boat paddles and used grain to coax a bull and 20 other cattle onto trailers.
That is 21 cattle moved to safety. Everyone on the Oklahoma crews came home safe. The animals were stranded by floodwater in New Mexico, and the grain was the lure that got the herd walking.
For the classroom
Firefighters from Oklahoma City and Tulsa spent 15 days helping in New Mexico floods. Part of the work was animals stuck in the mud. The crews used boat paddles to dig one cow out of mud that came up to her neck. They also used grain to lead a bull and 20 other cattle toward trailers so the animals could get to dry ground. That is 21 cattle. All of the firefighters came home safe. The rescue happened in New Mexico, and the crews were from Oklahoma.
- Why would flood mud trap a cow?
- How can food help move animals that are scared?
- Why send firefighters from one state to help another?
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Animals in OklahomaAnimals in New MexicoOklahoma City, OklahomaFirefightersAnimal rescueFirst respondersGood news on November 6
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