In an incident, an 8-year-old Asiatic lioness was rescued after she fell 50-ft down a well in the Gir Somnath district of Gujarat in India on Tuesday.

The lioness had come running after its prey in the dark and had fallen into the uncovered well. The animal managed to stay afloat for the night before it was rescued out by the forest officials next morning.

The villagers nearby heard its grunts at night and came to check, to their horror they discovered the ferocious animal trapped inside.

The villagers immediately raised an alarm and called the other villagers who then informed the forest officials.

The officials deployed their team who arrived on the spot around 5.30 am and started the rescue operation. The marathon operation went on for 12 long hours before the lioness was rescued out safely.

A villager said, “The Lioness had come from the Gir forest nearby and was after its prey when it fell into the uncovered well.”

“We heard its grunts at night and went to look into the well and discovered the animal trapped inside. We immediately rang up the forest officials who arrived around 5:30 in the morning.”

In the video captured by one of the villagers, the rescue workers can be seen working hard to pull out the ferocious lioness. They throw a rope and tie the lioness by it and then pull it out of the deep well.

It was later transferred to a cage to be taken to the veterinary centre for a health check-up before being released into the wild.