An approximately 50-year-old pet tortoise suddenly "ran away from home," crawling all the way onto a UK railway track and leisurely wandering along the rails, prompting railway company and Network Rail personnel to rush to the rescue.
This rare incident occurred near the Runcorn train station. A passenger waiting on the platform spotted the tortoise near the railway track and promptly alerted the staff.
Upon receiving the report, Britain's Avanti West Coast railway company immediately coordinated with Network Rail to temporarily halt train services at the station, ensuring the rescue operation could be conducted safely.
The rescue operation took only about 10 minutes, after which railway services resumed as normal.
It is understood that this tortoise is estimated to be around 50 years old. After being rescued, it was sent to a local animal rescue center, and was later reunited with its owner, ending this thrilling "railway adventure."
Kathryn O’Brien, Avanti West Coast’s Director of Customer Experience, said that after staff received a report of a "slow-moving trespasser" on the tracks, they immediately cooperated with Network Rail to launch a safe rescue operation.
She humorously added that even the company mascot "Turbo" came "out of its shell" to accompany this unexpected visitor to the local rescue center.
She stated that staff acted swiftly to ensure the tortoise’s safety while minimizing disruptions to passengers’ journeys.
Network Rail’s North West Route Operations Director Ross Davies also praised the staff involved in the rescue.
He joked that when the control room first received the news of a "tortoise invading the tracks," staff were indeed "shocked" for a moment, but the joint rescue operation with Avanti that followed was anything but "slow-moving."
Fortunately, train services were only suspended for about 10 minutes, after which passengers could continue their journeys, and this brave pet finally returned safely to its owner.
This unexpected episode also made the tortoise the most special "passenger" on the railway line that day. After a thrilling encounter on the West Coast Main Line, it ultimately made it home safely.