Swans have been urgently removed from The Crammer in Devizes after a van exploded by the famous pound.

Devizes Town Council has overseen the emergency evacuation of the swans following fears that the birds could be poisoned by fuel released after a Luton van exploded.

The swans, which are officially owned by The Queen, were rescued by the Swan Support charity, while council officers and the Environment Agency monitor pollution levels in The Crammer.

The charity was alerted by residents who noticed that after the van fire on March 14, which was tackled by Devizes firefighters, the birds appeared to be coated in an oil-like substance.

Swans have lived on The Crammer since the 18th century and getting them off the pond and into the animal ambulance was no easy matter for the Swan Support team.

An onlooker said: “First the swan rescue guy tried to wade across to the birds but that was like walking through treacle as there’s a lot of sludge in The Crammer.

"Then he tried to get close to them using a canoe. But of course, they’re swans, they fly away from you. But eventually five swans were caught."

But the swans may not actually be brought back to The Crammer as there is no natural food source for them there, which is why those rescued were malnourished.

A spokesman for Swan Support, based in Datchet, Berkshire, said the Crammer swans were recovering well.

She said: “They are doing really well, they are all outside at the moment sunning themselves. They are eating well and they have all been washed to remove a substance that smelled very strongly of motor oil.

“They will be returned but we’re not sure if they will be returned to the pond as there is not much food for them there. They may be released in a more appropriate location in the area.”

Meanwhile the council and Environment Agency must consider how best to tackle the pollution.

A council spokesman said: “A conversation was had with the Environment Agency following on from the van fire on Estcourt Street.

“The Environment Agency gave the following advice after a sheen of contamination was seen on The Crammer Pond - a sheen on the surface of the water usually looks worse than it is and although unsightly is a good sign that the quantity of the contaminate is low.

"It is difficult to clean as it is a thin film and using an oil spill boom won’t be effective. 

“If the weather conditions mean that the wind blows the contamination to the edge of the Crammer then a boom might be more effective to absorb it, but it is more likely to degrade and disperse.”