Running a business brings daily challenges that demand flexibility, problem-solving and resilience. But nothing could have prepared the team at BargainFox, based in Pembroke Dock, for the extraordinary scene that greeted them when they arrived at work one Monday morning.

Staff at the UK-based e-commerce discount and clearance platform were alerted to a faint but distressing cry coming from an underground drain inside the warehouse.

Investigating further, a team member lowered a mobile phone as far as possible into the pipe and confirmed the worst: a tiny chick had fallen approximately six metres down a drainpipe from the roof, sliding a further two metres below ground into a pipe encased in concrete.

With no immediate way to reach the bird, the team refused to give up. Throughout the day they attempted to construct a makeshift device to rescue the chick, but despite their best efforts, it remained out of reach. The cries continued, leaving staff deeply shaken.

Managing Director Jack Lear said:“It was incredibly distressing. We could see the chick on a phone camera but were completely unable to reach it. Everyone was upset — some people were in tears. It was heartbreaking to feel so helpless.”

As the working day ended, staff left fearing the worst. However, later that evening, Jack had a last-ditch idea — unlikely to work, but worth attempting.

Armed with the warehouse’s industrial vacuum cleaner and an extension lead, he fed the hose carefully down the drain. Unable to see inside and aware of a ‘T’ junction at the bottom of the pipe, it was a 50:50 chance the nozzle would even head in the right direction. The attempt appeared unsuccessful and when Jack tried to retrieve the hose, it became jammed, raising concerns he had made the situation even worse.

Then came an extraordinary moment.

When the hose finally came free, Jack was astonished to find the chick securely — and safely — suctioned to the end with one wing in the nozzle. Although understandably shocked, the bird was unharmed.

The rescued chick was immediately taken to The Tinker’s Hill Bird Sanctuary, run by wildlife rehabilitator Maria Evans in Amroth. Maria, who regularly cares for swans, ducks, geese and owls, identified the bird as a herring gull chick.

Herring gulls are currently “red-listed” in the UK, having suffered a serious decline in recent years due to reduced food availability in the oceans and increasingly unreliable hunting grounds.

Thanks to quick thinking, determination and a little ingenuity, what could have been a tragic outcome ended in a remarkable rescue — one that the BargainFox team says they will never forget.