The Royal Marines were called in to join a search for a reindeer which escaped a Santa’s grotto in Merseyside. Southport Offshore Rescue Trust said the Marines, coastguard, police and a drone helped to locate the loose mammal on Formby Beach.

The reindeer went missing on Saturday (November 29) from Santa’s Enchanted Forest, a festive event held annually in Formby. The trust was alerted just before 5pm to the escape, which sparked an eight hour long search. It posted on social media: “The reindeer eventually settled, allowing a vet, supported by Royal Marines, to safely secure it.

“Christmas is saved thanks to some great work from multiple agencies.”

The trust said members of its quad bike team helped in the search, with coastguards from Southport and Crosby called in to help amid fears the beast might end up in the River Mersey.

Team members used thermal binoculars to spot the reindeer on the beach. The beast was steered towards sand dunes at Altcar Rifle Range and a police drone kept watch, according to the trust.

A spokesman for the trust told the Telegraph the reindeer went into some dunes where it lay down and slept.

He said a vet from Salisbury, more than 200 miles away, arrived with sedatives and with the help of the Marines the furry escapee was secured.

The spokesman said: “It is a bit bizarre really. When we were phoned up we thought it might have been a roe deer. We’re all volunteers – we have our pagers on 365 days a year. You can get sent to anything.”

A local who saw the rogue reindeer told the Formby Bubble: “We thought it was a stag at first, but then a National Trust ranger asked if we’d seen a real reindeer.

“We pointed them in the direction it went – literally trotting north up the beach. Then the police arrived. They’re really worried about it getting onto the road.”

The emergency services tend to treat missing animals of a reindeer’s size seriously due to risks they can pose to themselves and to drivers.