Flatulent pig sparks gas leak scare - 30th Nov 2009 11:13am
A suspected gas leak at an Australian farm, which led to 15 firemen in two fire engines to rush to the scene, turned out to be the work of a flatulent pig.
The farmer in Axedale, a town in Victoria in the south-east of the country, called the emergency services after believing he had smelled gas.
But when the fire crews arrived, they found the real culprit – a 260lb sow the family's children kept as a pet.
Fire captain Peter Harkins said: "When we got there, as we drove up the driveway, there was this huge sow, about a 120-odd kilo (265-pound) sow, and it was very obvious where the gas was coming from.
“We could not only smell it, but we heard it and it was quite funny."
He added: "She got very excited when two trucks and 15 firies turned up and she squealed and farted and squealed and farted.
"I haven't heard too many pigs fart but I would describe it as very full-on."
However, despite the false alarm, Mr Harkins said the farmer had done the right thing by calling 000 (the Australian equivalent of 999). He told The Melbourne Herald Sun: "It's all bottled gas up here and a leaking cylinder could pose a major fire risk.
"It was because we took it so seriously that 15 volunteers still managed to attend the call out at 10.30 on Tuesday night."
![[Linked Image]](http://i.telegraph.co.uk/telegraph/multimedia/archive/01532/pig_1532179c.jpg)
THE TELEGRAPH
The farmer in Axedale, a town in Victoria in the south-east of the country, called the emergency services after believing he had smelled gas.
But when the fire crews arrived, they found the real culprit – a 260lb sow the family's children kept as a pet.
Fire captain Peter Harkins said: "When we got there, as we drove up the driveway, there was this huge sow, about a 120-odd kilo (265-pound) sow, and it was very obvious where the gas was coming from.
“We could not only smell it, but we heard it and it was quite funny."
He added: "She got very excited when two trucks and 15 firies turned up and she squealed and farted and squealed and farted.
"I haven't heard too many pigs fart but I would describe it as very full-on."
However, despite the false alarm, Mr Harkins said the farmer had done the right thing by calling 000 (the Australian equivalent of 999). He told The Melbourne Herald Sun: "It's all bottled gas up here and a leaking cylinder could pose a major fire risk.
"It was because we took it so seriously that 15 volunteers still managed to attend the call out at 10.30 on Tuesday night."
THE TELEGRAPH
