Train services bound for Cambridge, England, were halted to rescue a giant tortoise that had strayed onto the tracks.
Clyde the tortoise was spotted walking the rail line, but the report was initially not taken seriously by railway workers.
After a passenger spotted the animal on a track northeast of Thetford, in Norfolk, she immediately raised the alarm.
Diane Akers posted a photo on Twitter to notify the Greater Anglia train operators, but she wasn’t sure the message got through.
“When we got to Norwich station I told staff in the office there, and the man looked at me as if I was mad,” Akers told BBC.
But then a police officer came along and said he’d seen her tweet.
@greateranglia There is a giant tortoise on the line past Eccles Road going away from Norwich it’s still alive but injured pic.twitter.com/jxX14Nx60P
— Diane Akers (@di_akers_) August 1, 2022
The 2.5ft lumbering giant escaped his home at the Swallow Aquatics in East Harling, Norfolk, breaking through a wall in his pen.
“Giant tortoises can move quite quickly and he landed up about half a mile from home,” one of the caretakers told the Metro.uk newspaper.
Clyde has lived at the center for several years after his family could no longer care for their pet.
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The August 1st incident caused four rail lines to be affected—with two trains being terminated early and another starting 20 minutes behind schedule.
The 140-pound animal was checked out by vets, but was only superficially affected when a 4-5 inch piece of its shell broke off. They said it should grow back over time, but all its organs are fine.
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Thank you to the very observant lady and for taking her tweet seriously. Another life saved-congrats to all.