Firefighters carried out a dramatic rescue last night - of a family's pet spiders.

They were called to reports of a washing machine blaze in a house in Pine Tree Avenue, Canterbury, just after 7.45pm yesterday.

Two fire engines attended and crews wearing breathing apparatus used a hose-reel jet to put out the flames.

A high pressure fan was then used to clear the building of smoke.

As a precaution, firefighters rescued pet spiders due to the amount of smoke inside the property.

There were no injuries to people or spiders,

Following this incident, Kent Fire and Rescue is reminding people not to leave washing machines in standby mode for long periods of time, and to avoid leaving them running overnight or when no one's home - in case an electrical fault occurs.

Escaped animals, unusual finds and news from the RSPCA can all be found here.

Read more: All the latest news from Canterbury