Fire crews called out to Bedfordshire ruin as member of the public gets stuck freerunning

A female parkour runner had to be rescued after getting stuck freerunning at the Houghton House ruins in Ampthill.

Yesterday (Sunday, August 2), crews from Bedford, Ampthill and Dunstable attended the incident at the 17th century ruin just after 7pm.

In a tweet put out by Beds Fire Control, it said: "A large number of appliances were mobilised to rescue a member of public from the ledge of some ancient ruins in Ampthill.

"The member of public was believed to have been taking part in parkour and got themselves stuck. This incident took resources from Bedford, Ampthill and Dunstable."

Beds Fire Control added: "We would ask members to thinks carefully about the consequences of your dangerous hobbies and the knock-on effect it has on emergency services."

Parkour - or freerunning - involves moving from one point to another by running, jumping or climbing.

A spokesman for Beds Fire & Rescue Service said: "Whilst there may be dangers when doing parkour – no challenge seems to be the same, if individuals get stuck it takes the Beds Fire & Rescue Service away from dealing with real emergencies.

"Remember to be careful and sensible when undertaking unusual challenges, make sure you are safe at all times and think about the risks. It took four appliances to rescue this female, it is a cost to the public and places like this are not always accessible by road etc."

Houghton House was built in the early 17th century. It's thought it may have been the inspiration for the Palace Beautiful in John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress. When it was dismantled in 1797, the ruins survived as a garden feature in the grounds of nearby Ampthill Park.