A 26-year-old farmer in Derbyshire, UK, didn’t hesitate to put her life on the line to rescue a flock of sheep from the floods.
After Storm Dennis hit the UK, many areas are now facing flooding with hundreds of people forced to evacuate their homes. But despite the warnings, this brave young farmer decided to stay and protect her sheep from the wrath of nature. After torrential downpours hit her farm on Sunday, Faye Russell received a call from a neighbor to let her know some of her sheep and labs are at the risk of drowning after stranded in a flooded area.
Armed with nothing but a rope, the brave woman jumped into the freezing cold waters to help the poor animals. “I said I’m going to have to go first,” Faye told Metro. “I didn’t fancy filling out the accident book for anybody else. It was fierce. I was swimming and had lambs under my arms trying to keep them above water.”
As her farm in Derbyshire is right on the floodplain, the farmer said she spent all the day to move her 300-strong flock to higher ground. All with the help of Tom, her beloved Border Collie.
“The water came at such a force,” the brave farmer told UNILAD. “It was really driving rain. The wind and the rain cut me in two. So the sheep took themselves behind the flood-bank and effectively watched the tide come in around them.”
Though she was aware of the danger, Faye said wouldn’t let the poor animals drowning for anything in the world. On the other hand, she explained she had no doubts she would save the entire flock.
“You put your life on the line for your animals, you really do,” she said. “Any farmer will agree they come above yourself and above anything. The thing is, they are what we live for.”
Thanks to her bravely and with the help of her “absolutely fantastic” neighbors, Faye has managed to save all animals and move them to higher ground, where they’re safe now.