A SPARROWHAWK had to be rescued by firefighters after becoming tangled in a television aerial in Crosshill Road, Blackburn.

The young bird of prey was wearing jesses - thin leather leashes - around its ankles which caught on the aerial at 5pm yesterday.

Leading firefighter Paul Simpson said: "We think someone had been training it and it had flown away. We used a roof ladder to reach it, then cut it free and brought it down in a box."

The bird was unharmed and is being cared for by charity Wildlife Line, who hope to reunite it with its owner.

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