BONKING TORTOISE BURNS DOWN HOUSE
Randy reptile was dying for a bonk
A FRISKY tortoise seeking a shag after hibernation burnt down the conservatory he lived in – killing both himself and his partner.
Sex-starved Henry knocked over his heating lamp in his excited state, which in turn set fire to wood chippings and caused the blaze in his home in Thornaby, Teesside.
His owner, Alf Clayton, believes Henry woke from his winter sleep and began chasing Alice.
He said: “Henry had woken up and was trying to mate with his partner.
“He always was a bit of a one and had chased her around and must have knocked the heater over.”
The heater set fire to wood shavings, destroying the conservatory and damaging the garage and its roof.
Both Henry and Alice were killed in the blaze. Mr Clayton, a retired council worker, said the tortoises were his wife Gayner’s pride and joy.
Alf said: “She’s devastated. Firefighters said they would have perished from smoke inhalation and wouldn’t have suffered.”
He praised neighbours who alerted the couple to the blaze before 8pm on Saturday.
Mr Clayton said: “They spotted smoke coming out of our garage next to our home.
“We managed to get the car out of the garage but then the conservatory burst into flames.
“There was no way we could get the tortoises out – it was too intense. We tried.
“It could have been so much worse.”
A BLAZE in a bedroom was caused by sunlight bouncing off a mirror, fire chiefs said yesterday. Flames and smoke caused thousands of pounds damage in the bedroom of a house at Charlton, near Malmesbury, Wiltshire.
A brigade spokesman said: “It was most likely caused by sunlight reflecting off a mirror.”
Six fire crews were called to tackle the blaze.