Fans of Russian vodka will rejoice at this story:

When two circus elephants were trapped in a trailer that had caught fire in Novosibirsk, their trainers were able to get them out to safety…only to realize they were being exposed to freezing Siberian temperatures. Until they could transport the animals to a nearby community college’s gym, they had to think of something to keep frostbite risk at bay. So they turned to vodka.

Though doctors say that alcohol actually lowers body temperature, the circus trainers insist that the elephants–Tonga and daughter Mongu–were saved from frostbite or even death by the miraculous spirits. The vodka was mixed with warm water and left the African animals with only a small amount of frostbite on the tips of their ears.