Cat stuck behind toilet wall rescued by firefighters after they smashed a hole in the bathroom.

Curiosity almost killed a cat who had to be rescued by firefighters after getting stuck in a gap behind a bathroom wall.

The crew had to use a crowbar to smash a hole in the tiled en-suite toilet big enough grab Tiddles the cat and pull her to safety.

She had fallen nine feet down a soil stack void and then became wedged in a wall void behind the back of the toilet after following her owner, Luke Hall, into the loft earlier in the day.

But no one was aware of her plight until seven hours later when the trapped moggy began yowling her displeasure.

Luke, of School Lane, Wilburton, said: “We hadn’t seen Tiddles for a few hours when we suddenly heard a scratching noise and miaowing above our heads in the living room.”

A short investigation into where the sound was coming from made him realise she was actually trapped inside the wall.

“I realised she must have followed me up into the loft earlier that day and gone to investigate something interesting when she fell down into the soil stack void.”

So Luke, an aviation consultant, crawled around the loft, looking for the hole then dropped a camera down to make sure she was really there.

“I didn’t want to knock a hole in the wrong place and end up hurting her,” says Luke, “so I dropped a plumbline down the hole and measured to where she was trapped. And she was stuck head first. I worked out she must be behind the toilet wall in our en-suite bathroom.”

Grimly, he set about removing tiles from behind the toilet, then took out the toilet itself, but still couldn’t reach Tiddles.

“Eventually I made a hole big enough for her to poke her head out but I couldn’t pull her free.”

He called the RSPCA for help who called the Fire Service to bring specialist cutting equipment. However when they got there, Luke said: “They just picked up my crowbar and smashed a bigger hole!”

Tiddles was out in minutes. “We’re very glad she is safe and doesn’t seem to have come to any harm. She is our much loved family pet so it was worth it, despite the mess.” says Luke. “Plus the fire brigade turning up made my six-year-old son Humphrey’s day!”

The crew stayed for a piece of Christmas cake before heading off.

A Fire service spokesperson said: “On Monday (December, 10) at 9.26pm, one crew from Cottenham was called to assist the RSPCA with a cat rescue on School Lane, Wilburton.

Firefighters used specialist equipment to remove the wall around the cat and free it without injury. The crew returned to their station by 10.10pm.”