A TORTOISE was rescued by firefighters after it became trapped in a flame-filled garage.

The pet was in its enclosure at a house in Jefferson Avenue, Laindon, when the blaze broke out at 1.45pm on Saturday.

Firefighters were called by neighbours, who smelt the burning, and discovered the tortoise when they burst into the garage to tackle the flames.

A spokesman at Basildon fire station said: “It took us a while to pinpoint the burning smell when we arrived at the scene, but we eventually got into a garage and found the tortoise in its pen.

“A heating lamp had set fire to its bedding and it was smouldering away.

“We brought the animal out unharmed, put the fire out and found the tortoise a nice warm box to sit in while it waited for its owners.”