A kitten was at the centre of a dramatic and protracted rescue after apparently climbing down a pipe and getting stuck in a blocked-up cellar.
The black kitten, aged about five months, was first heard on 9 May at the rear of William Hill bookmakers in Market Place in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, and the rescue effort lasted almost a week.
It involved several drainage companies, the fire service, the RSPCA and members of the public before it was finally freed last Thursday in what the animal charity called a "complex" rescue.
The kitten, nicknamed William after the shop he was found under, is being cared for by the RSPCA in Norfolk and is said to be doing well.
Wisbech residents had taken to social media to express their concerns about the kitten stuck in the pipes and tried to coax the cat out, but to no avail.
Drainage companies including Dyno-Rod, DALROD Cambridge and JW Drainage Services came along to help, putting cameras down the ventilation pipes to try to locate the kitten.
Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service attended three times, but said they were "unable to release it" and as the kitten was not "physically trapped" the rescue effort was left in the hands of the RSPCA.
A fire service spokesperson said: "The kitten managed to find itself in such an awkward position that even our animal rescue equipment couldn't reach it."
Attempts were made to coax the kitten out by putting things down the pipe such as an offcut of carpet and baiting it with food in the hope the animal would climb out.
The rescue was "far more complex than anyone expected", the RSPCA said.
No-one knew where the pipes went and cellars in all the nearby shops were searched in order to find out.
When the pipes were dug out, it became apparent the kitten had gone into an old cellar under the William Hill shop and because it had been covered over, no-one knew it existed – except the curious cat.
The company gave permission for part of the shop floor to be dug up to reveal a trap door to the cellar but yet more dismantling was needed after the frightened cat ran off and got itself stuck in a wall cavity.
RSPCA animal rescue officer John Woods and Emily Cole, centre manager at the RSPCA's West Norfolk branch near King's Lynn, were on site for a number of days trying to help the kitten.
Speaking after the rescue, Mr Woods said: "It's been quite a surreal few days – we literally tried everything we could to rescue this kitten – but every time there seemed to be a new challenge.
"I literally cannot thank everyone involved enough – without such a team effort we would never have been able to get William out.
"It's actually been so heart-warming how everyone has pulled together for the sake of rescuing William and it's just the best news that we managed to get him out unharmed."
When he was eventually freed from his lengthy ordeal, the kitten was rushed to the Norfolk branch, and while still thin, is said to be doing well and will eventually be rehomed – although the centre is not yet taking applications for William's forever home.
Mr Woods added: "This is a rescue none of us will ever forget – but the fact everyone worked together for the sake of William is just so brilliant."