A disappointing football match led to an extraordinary act of kindness in Devon, England.
Alastair Cass stepped outside after watching Arsenal lose 3–0 to Brighton. Near his home, he heard a faint sound from the valley. He listened again, then took his ATV toward the river until he could make out a call for help.
Sallie had been trapped in mud up to her chest for four hours. She was shivering and unable to free herself. Cass hurried home for rope and wooden boards, then returned to the muddy gully. The boards helped him approach her, but the mud’s grip was too strong for him to pull her out safely.
With no phone signal at the spot, Cass went back to his house to call emergency services. Firefighters arrived first, followed by specialist rescue teams, police, ambulance crews and others. Cass made repeated trips to guide responders through the difficult terrain and carry equipment to Sallie. After a two-hour rescue, the crews brought her to safety.
The unlikely turn of events was not lost on either of them. Cass told SWNS he had gone outside only because he was fed up with the match; otherwise, he would have stayed in to watch the post-match interviews.
Sallie later sent him a thank-you card. “I have never been so happy to see another human being as I was you that day!” she wrote. She added one more cheerful line: “Thanks to Arsenal for being rubbish at football!”
