This is the moment a huge elk that fell through the ice on a lake in Russia with its calf is rescued and pulled to safety.

The footage, filmed on Lake Ploskoye, in Russia’s Tver region, shows three men tying a rope around the elk, while the animal appears too tired to fight back.

They are joined by a fourth rescuer as they hoist the large elk out of the water after cutting through the ice with a chainsaw and an axe.

The elk survived while the calf did not, according to local media reports. The larger animal reportedly ran off into the forest after regaining some of its strength.

The images were obtained from the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry on 17th February along with a statement saying. “In the Tver region, specialists from the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations rescued a struggling elk.

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“On Lake Ploskoye, near the village of Shikhino, an elk and a calf fell through the ice.

“Rescuers from the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations used an axe, a chainsaw and a rope to pull the artiodactyls out of the ice hole.

“Unfortunately, the calf did not survive. The rescued elk was examined on the spot by a forester. The animal was not injured. The animal then quickly disappeared into the forest.”