Hero firefighters saved the lives of two cats after rescuing them from a burning house and then treating them with oxygen.
Remarkable pictures published by Runcorn Fire Station showed two crew members cradling the cats in towels with breathing masks over their faces.
Crews had been called to the Halton Brook area of the Cheshire town at 3.05pm on Saturday to deal with a blaze on the ground floor of a two-storey house, the Liverpool Echo reports.
All of the human occupants were accounted for, and the two cats were taken to the vets after receiving oxygen.
Runcorn Fire Station tweeted on Sunday that the pet-friendly oxygen masks had been donated by the Smokey Paws not-for-profit group and training provided by The Willows vets.
An incident log published by Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service said four firefighters in breathing apparatus extinguished the blaze.
Two fire engines attended, one from Runcorn and the other from Widnes.
A large fan was used to clear smoke from the property and a thermal imaging camera checked for hotspots.
Crews were at the scene for around 90 minutes.
An update issued on Sunday said vets had confirmed the cats were doing well.
After the pics were posted on Runcorn Fire Station’s Facebook page followers praised the firefighters.
One said: “You are all heroes everyday. Thank you for the selfless job you all do.”
Another said: “Thank you so much to you all for saving those precious kitties’ lives.
"You firefighters are such amazing people and we are so lucky to have you in our lives.”
One woman said: “Well done for helping to save the cats! Heroes!”
Another said: “Fantastic job. Real heroes.”
