Squirrel extracted from fan after 999 call

IF SQUIRRELS were cats, one little furry Paignton grey squirrel would be down to eight lives after being rescued from an extractor fan by firefighters.

A fire crew from Paignton was called out by an RSPCA officer to a residential home in Oldway Road, after the squirrel fell down a rooftop extractor unit.

Watch commander Steve Anderson said the residents first alerted the RSPCA when they heard what they thought was a seagull inside the pipe.

However, the animal welfare officer decided it was safer to get firefighters involved as health and safety would not have let him go up a ladder.

Watch commander Anderson said: "The roof was too high and the RSPCA guy thought it would be too dangerous. So he called us out.

"We went up there on the 135ft ladder. We took the top of the extractor fan off and lowered a fishing net down.

"The squirrel leapt on my face and on to the glass conservatory below and on to the ground. Then he was off."

The unusual 999 call-out was received by the Paignton crew shortly after 4pm on Friday.

Watch commander Anderson added: "There were a few skeletons down the duct pipe of other animals who weren't so lucky. I think this little fellow is down to eight lives."