'It was a horror show' says mum of four year old as they watched newly hatched cygnets killed in canal side

Five baby cygnets died when they got sucked into an overflow grate on the canal in Welshpool in front of horrified onlookers, including a mum and her young daughter.

Lee Williams who lives by the canal, said the incident happened near to a grate not far from the wharf, where a pair of swans had recently nested.

“I've lived here all my life and swans have never nested down there before," she said. "There is a grate down there that goes down into the canal and comes out in a gully the other side.

“Not long ago someone came down and cleaned out the grate but they just dumped all the debris on the verge next to the grate and the swans have come along and nested on it.”

Residents were concerned that it was not an appropriate place for the birds to nest on due to the grate, which sucked in water.

Lee said: “Residents have been popping down to see that they are all right because they should not have nested there.”

She added that around six weeks ago, the cob and pen laid a clutch of eggs, which hatched on Saturday.

On Tuesday evening, she took her four-year-old daughter to see the swans at around 7.30pm. The pair, along with a number of other locals who were on the canal at the time, then witnessed what she described as a “horror show” as the one by one the cygnets were killed.

"Six or seven cygnets had hatched on Saturday but they were not ready to go into the water as they were only a few days old. But there was no room on the nest and as we were watching, one fell in the water and drowned straight away. Then the others tried to swim but just got sucked straight into this grate and were spat out the other side."

As Lee tried to calm her horrified daughter, one of the onlookers by the canal tried to save several of the stricken baby swans.

“Most just got sucked out the other end of the grate into the gully where they died but there were two on the edge of the grate. I kept telling my daughter we would try to save them, and this gentleman reached over the fence with a net and managed to get them.”

But she said the nightmare didn't stop there.

Upset that the man had one if its youngsters in a net, the pen tried to attack the rescuer, forcing him to drop one of the cygnets.

“The mum then stood on it and killed it,” said Lee. “It was a horror show.”

She said as the incident unfolded, one woman called the RSPCA but was told they they would not come out.

“She was distraught and was asking for them to come out and help but they said because they were in their natural habitat, it was not something they would attend,” said Lee. "But they were not in their natural habitat. They should not have been there."

On Thursday morning, she said there were just two cygnets left on the nest on the canal.

"I think in the end only two survived but if no-one had intervened and helped, none would have," said Lee. “But the swans should not have been nesting there at all and were only because the council did not clear all the debris but just dumped it. The nest was next to this grate so the cygnets never stood a chance.”

Powys County Council say the clearing of vegetation on the canal is handled by the Canal and River Trust, who said in a statement: "It is upsetting to learn of the death of the cygnets. Our ecologist had previously visited the site and was concerned with the location of the nest next to the weir, but it is illegal to move or interfere with an active birds nest.

“Though members of the public are willing to help with these incidents, we strongly advise against getting involved due to the risk the water flow and the potential reaction from the parent swans.

“We will be removing the material as soon as we can confirm that the nest is no longer being used.”

A spokesperson for the RSPCA said incorrect advice was given to the people in Welshpool and the organisation apologised.

The RSPCA spokesperson said: "We are very saddened to hear that a group of cygnets became caught up in a grate on a canal and died and that this was witnessed by several people including children. This must have been very distressing to see unfold and we are really sorry for the upset this must have caused.

“It can be a difficult task for our call handlers to assess certain situations over the phone - however, we are very sorry that incorrect advice was given in this case.

“We do attend rescues of this nature but due to the immediacy of this situation advice for members of the public to seek out help from other local rescues should have been recommended by our call centre. Due to the time of the incident coupled with our limited resources as a charity - it may have meant that we would not have made it to the location quick enough to have saved these cygnets. The nearest officer could have been quite a distance away - the RSPCA has just one inspector or Animal Rescue Officer for every 166,759 people.

“We’re very grateful to the members of the public who did what they could to help - although we do advise against anyone putting themselves at risk in any difficult situations.”