Ducklings get stuck in tarmac as roads melt on hottest ever July day

 
On the mend: The RSPCA used butter to help remove the tar (Picture: RSPCA)
RSPCA
Sebastian Mann2 July 2015

Stricken ducklings became stuck fast in tarmac as roads melted on the hottest day of the year.

Members of the public came across the trapped animals in Ashill, Norfolk, yesterday, before managing to extract them from the scorched tarmac.

They then took the young birds for treatment at a nearby RSPCA centre in East Winch.

Manager Alison Charles said: “All five ducklings were so poorly when they came in we weren’t sure they were going to make it.

"They were absolutely covered in the thick, black muck and were very dehydrated.

“But we got to work quickly and started smothering them in the Lurpak butter to try to loosen the tar, before washing it off with washing up liquid and warm water.

Close shave: The young animals were completely coated with tar when they were rescued (Picture: RSPCA)
RSPCA

“It might seem like an odd combination but the butter is an old fashioned remedy for removing tar and it really works."

Almost all the tar was removed and the ducklings are now on the mend, Ms Charles added.

A temperature of 36.7C was recorded at Heathrow on Wednesday, making it the hottest July day ever and the warmest so far this year.

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