Stranded cows rescued after earthquake

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — Three cows were left high and dry with nowhere to move after an earthquake measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale hit New Zealand on Monday, The Associated Press reported.

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Video taken by Newshub news service from a helicopter near the small town of Kaikoura showed two adult cattle and a calf stranded on a chunk of land that had been ripped apart during the earthquake.

The patch of grass where the animals stood was surrounded by deep ravines of collapsed dirt carved out by the earthquake.

Two deaths have been confirmed — one in Kaikoura and one in Mount Lyford.

Newshub reported that two cows and a calf were rescued. They were part of a larger group of 14 cows.

Kaikoura is close to the epicenter of the earthquake. The quake also was strongly felt to the south in Christchurch but was far less damaging than a smaller 2011 earthquake that devastated the city and killed 185 people, the AP reported.

According to the AP, New Zealand's 10 million cattle easily outnumber its 4.7 million people.

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