A CAT stuck under a garage floor for up to three weeks was helped to safety by firefighters - and a tin of tuna.

Owners of a new house at Teal Way, off Grovehurst Road, Iwade, near Sittingbourne, heard a cat's pitiful cries as they moved in at the weekend.

Firefighters and the RSPCA joined forces for a lengthy rescue operation and now Oscar, a tabby, is safely back with his owners.

The drama began at 12.20pm on Sunday. The family moving in heard the cat and thought it was trapped in pipework.

Leading firefighter Neil Ryder said: "We looked at manhole covers at either end of the house and then into the garage. We cut a section of the pipework so we could pour some water down there.

"When we went outside, the water was gushing out at one end, but at the other manhole, it was just a slow trickle, so we found where the blockage was."

But because of the tricky location, they called the RSPCA for advice. Meanwhile, fire crews secured a specialist piece of equipment known as Snake-Eye. This was a camera attached to the end of a flexi rod, used in confined spaces to send back images.

Mr Ryder said: "We set it all up and put the Snake Eye in, but we couldn't find anything. But we could still hear the cat miaowing. We went back into the garage and put the camera under the floor - and then we saw the cat's eyes blinking."

The tabby was trapped in a six inch gap between a suspended floor in the garage and the ground.

His owner said he had been missing for up to three weeks, so the rescue team was keen not to distress him further.

Oscar, who was clearly hungry, was enticed out of the hole by a tin of tuna.