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Russia’s infatuation with beer has grown steadily over recent years and the army is no exception. So, when soldiers were called in to bolster a week-long struggle to rescue 10 tonnes of beer trapped under Siberian ice, it only took them a day to retrieve it…the delivery lorry didn’t really matter.
The lorry carrying the beer sank when trying to cross the frozen Irtysh River, and a rescue team of six divers, 10 workers and a modified T-72 tank have managed to save the load, but not the truck. The driver managed to jump to safety before the lorry sank.
''The situation hasn't developed according to our ideal scenario,'' the deputy head of the Cherlaksky region, told the agency. Temperatures were around minus 27 degrees Celsius (minus 17 degrees Fahrenheit) in the region, near the Siberian city of Omsk and around 2,200 km (1,400 miles) from Moscow.
The soldiers eventually managed to retrieve the barrels of beer but the rope holding the lorry snapped and it slipped back under the water. The local Omsk brewery where the delivery had been destined to arrive said the freezing temperatures probably kept the quality of the beer from deteriorating and said it will still accept the consignment. It plans to sell the beer at a discount.
Reuters
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