Essex police search for screaming woman finds pet parrot

Steve Wood said police were justified in following up the concerned report from a member of the public

A retired police officer who owns 22 parrots praised his local force for their response after the sound of his feathered friend Freddie was mistaken for a screaming woman.

Essex Police dispatched three vehicles to Steve Wood's home in Canvey Island on Tuesday after a concerned 999 call was made by a member of the public.

Mr Wood explained his noisy three-year-old adolescent was in fact the culprit.

"I thought, 'Oh my God what have I done?'," Mr Wood told BBC Essex.

"I opened the door to two laughing police officers and they said, 'Don't worry mate, I think we've got this one sussed.'

"I said, 'What have I done?', and they said, 'We have had a report that there is a woman screaming for help in your house and we have come to check everything is OK.'

"I'm just surprised it hasn't happened previously."

Mr Wood said adolescent Freddie (pictured) was going through a noisy phase

Mr Wood shared a joke with police officers outside his house

Mr Wood has kept birds for 21 years and now owns green-winged macaws, blue-and-gold macaws, a Hahn's macaw, two Amazon parrots, eight Indian ringnecks and budgies.

He said his feathered friends were at their most vocal in the mornings and evenings - referred to as "jungle time" - but that Freddie had been particularly hormonal.

"Police have done the right thing and the caller has done the right thing - there is no bad feelings on my part," said the 54-year-old.

Essex Police said it was contacted shortly before 13:50 BST on Tuesday to "a member of the public reporting the sound of a female's screams".

"Officers attended to conduct a welfare check, but upon arrival discovered the noise was in fact caused by a number of parrots inside a property," a spokesman said.

"Officers engaged with a member of the public at the property and we thank him for his understanding and patience."