Cat tree rescue man saved by Devon firefighters

A man from Devon who climbed a tree to save a cat ended up having to be rescued after he became stuck.

The man spotted the cat in the conifer in Chulmleigh on Monday night and thought it was unable to get down.

But as he climbed the tree to reach the animal, it came down of its own accord and the would-be-rescuer discovered he was stuck.

He called the emergency services on his mobile phone and firefighters were dispatched to the scene with a ladder.

'Little embarrassed'

A spokesman for Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service said: "We were called out just after 2130 BST.

"The man was about 15ft (4.5m) up the tree and the problem was that it was getting dark and he couldn't see where to put his feet to climb down.

"He had been there for about 20 minutes and fortunately he had his mobile phone on him and was able to call us otherwise he might have had to stay up the tree for longer or risk injury trying to climb down.

"The man was fine but a little embarrassed when he came down the ladder - and he told us that as soon as the cat had seen him climbing up the tree it had run away down the other side."