Gazelle rescued from Skydive Dubai

Dubai: Skydive Dubai’s training school witnessed a surprise landing on July 26. And no, it was no star act by a fun jumper.

A golden gazelle, which happened to stray into the school’s landing area at Margham, fell into its swoop pond and was struggling to get out. The school staff who noticed the animal rescued her.

Skydive instructor Karim Malik told XPRESS: “I saw the gazelle when we opened for the day at around 6.30am. She was cold, hypothermic and completely exhausted. She was hardly moving or responding.”

The rectangular swoop pond with water, measuring 80x20 metres, is part of the landing area where experienced canopy pilots land. Beginners stick to the grassy areas nearby. The school, which teaches both ground school and training jumps is generally packed on Fridays. On this particular morning it had over 50 fun jumpers raring to go.

But the gazelle was spotted early enough, causing no delays.

“I suspect the gazelle was in the water for an hour or so. The pond’s lining is made of plastic, so it would have been difficult for her to come up. It’s very rare to see gazelles out here because they live deep inside the desert,” said Malik.

An accelerated free fall (AFF) instructor, Malik said his first aid skills came in handy. He quickly pulled the gazelle out of the water, threw a rescue blanket around her and rushed her to a vet in the Green Community. Since it was still early hours on a Friday, the vet had to be awakened with a special request, he said.

The gazelle received immediate treatment, including a drip for sufficient hydration. Malik said it was not until late afternoon that she began recovering, following which he released her into the desert off the Al Ain highway. “I waited and 15 minutes later, I could see she had sprung back to life.”

Malik said he was glad he could rescue an animal in distress, especially since the gazelle is a native, treasured species in the UAE.