These pictures show a security van that rolled into a river and was swept downstream together with its cargo of cash.
The driver of the van realised he had a technical problem with the vehicle while transporting money in the market town of Koetschach-Mauthen in Carinthia in southern Austria.
He drove it to a local garage in order to have it repaired so he could continue with his rounds, but when he got out of the vehicle he either forgot to secure the handbrake, or it was the handbrake which was defective, and it ended up rolling across the forecourt.
Eventually it came to a bank were it rolled into the river and was carried hundreds of metres downstream before it could be secured by firemen.
A spokesman for the local fire brigade confirmed it was a complicated rescue mission and added that they had also needed to get assistance from a canyoning expert and local climbers.
Ropes were fixed to a digger allowing the canyoning expert and the climbers to reach the stranded vehicle, according to police inspector Wolfgang Guggenberger.
The digger was then able to lift the van to the shoreline where a tractor with a tow rope was able to pull it out.
Police said that the security van suffered extensive damage as it was swept downstream, although there was no damage to the environment as none of the oil or petrol leaked out.
It was not revealed how much money was in the van, but the containers in which the money was stowed are reportedly waterproof and heatproof in the event of a fire.
As a result the money was undamaged and after being moved to a new van, it was transported to its final destination.
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Story By: Michael Leidig, Sub-Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News
