RSPCA rescues cat from chimney
It was discovered that Murphy had reached the roof through a small hole in the loft space.
A kitten has been rescued by the RSPCA and a specialist fire crew after becoming trapped inside a chimney.
The rescue team were called out after four month old Murphy was seen on a 25 foot high roof in Bradford, having been missing for more than two days.
The RSPCA was joined by the West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service to help retrieve Murphy, however their attempts were disrupted when the nervous cat jumped down a nearby chimney.
This meant that a tactical team which deals with animal rescues had to be called out.
The specialised group, based at Cleckheaton Fire Station, were forced to drill a hole in the wall that lead into the chimney breast in their attempts to locate her.
Once they had cut a hole big enough, one of the officers was able to reach in to grab the cat and get her out.
It was discovered that Murphy had reached the roof through a small hole in the loft space, from where she could not be reached and refused to return.
She has now been safely reunited with her owners, uninjured but covered in grime from the chimney.
Aleesha Haddlesey, an RSPCA animal rescue officer that was on the scene, said: “We couldn’t access the roof from inside the property as the loft was too small. We also tried contacting the landlord of the neighbouring property to open a skylight on the roof, from which we called out to her, but that was to no avail.
“She panicked and ran down the chimney and when the fire officers tried to reach her using a grasper plus a reach and rescue pole, they found she had dropped too far down to get to.
“Fortunately, the fire and rescue service has a specialist team who were able to use their expertise to access the chimney.”
Image © RSPCA
Defra has published guidance for the vet sector ahead of a proposed UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary agreement.
