Fire crews to the rescue...to save tortoise in smoke logged flat

A TORTOISE was plucked to safety after a heating lamp dropped into its tank and started filling a flat with smoke.

The pet was safely in the hands of firefighters called to the ground floor property in Warwick on Saturday afternoon.

They found the flat to be heavily smoke logged and quickly took the tortoise to fresh air before ventilating the property.

The charred lamp was removed from the box by crews from Kenilworth and Leamington who attended at around 1pm.

Neighbours were able to dial 999 after smoke alarms at the address provided an early warning.

On Twitter, Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service said: “We have rescued cats up trees and dogs stuck down holes, but a tortoise is something new.”

The service has never shrugged its duties when its comes to the rescue of beloved pets.

At the start of June, a four-legged explorer with sad eyes had to be freed by firefighters after becoming trapped in a hole.

The bewildered-looking creature needed an SOS call after it dived down what appeared to be the entrance to a rabbit warren.

Fortunately, firefighters from Stratford-upon-avon worked quickly to retrieve the dog on June 5.

Safely back above ground, the weary animal looked distinctly sheepish but had no injures as it was comforted and wrapped in a blanket. On May 26, a wild animal needed help twice on the same night. The deer had to be freed by firefighters based at Radford Road Station after becoming stuck in railings in Albany Road. Using hydraulic equipment, the crew managed to free the young animal that had suffered some minor injuries before it ran away. A few hours later the station received another call in the same area of a deer trapped in railings - and it soon became apparent that it was the same animal.