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Tortoise beats the trains: Giant reptile's day out disrupts rail services for hours

Train services had to be stopped to rescue an injured giant tortoise that had strayed onto the tracks in Norfolk

Trains were stopped in Norfolk on Monday afternoon, August 1 due to an escaped Giant African Spurred Tortoise on the line. Clyde, the injured reptile, was discovered on the tracks at around 12:40 BST close to Harling Road station, northeast of Thetford, on a Cambridge-bound line.

After a passenger spotted the giant tortoise on the tracks while riding on a train, efforts were launched to stop the trains and rescue Clyde.

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Diane Akers, who was on her way to Norwich, tweeted a photo of the tortoise on the tracks, saying it was "in a bad way' with a visibly injured shell. "There is a giant tortoise on the train line I am on the train to Norwich just past Harling it’s still alive but in a bad way." Akers wrote.

When other Twitter users asked if the tortoise would be okay after what appeared to be a "nasty injury," Akers responded that the animal was thankfully on the mend, writing, "The train company said he will make a full recovery, thank goodness!"

While ongoing strikes have inconvenienced many passengers, others were surprised to find their trains canceled or delayed due to a 'large injured tortoise.' Clyde's wanderings impacted four UK rail lines, with two Greater Anglia trains terminating early and another starting 20 minutes late.

Another passenger, Anna Debenham, claimed that a tannoy announcement had informed the train: "We apologise for the 74-minute delay to this service. This was caused by a tortoise on the tracks." Debenham added: "Amazingly, I did not mishear that. There is indeed a tortoise on the tracks that is causing chaos. The train announcer would like everyone to know that it is a Giant African Tortoise."

Greater Anglia tweeted, "Due to animals on the railway at #HarlingRoad the line is blocked. Train services running through this station may be cancelled, delayed, or revised. Disruption is expected until further notice. This affects our Norwich to Stansted Airport line and also East Midlands Railway."

The train company later tweeted that all lines had reopened, but that some services remained disrupted.

"Following animals on the line earlier at #HarlingRoad all lines have now reopened. Train services running through this station are returning to normal but some services may still be cancelled, delayed or revised. Disruption is expected until 15:30 01/08," it explained. The company added: "The large injured tortoise has been removed and all lines have now reopened. However due to the severe delays caused some services from Norwich will terminate/start from Cambridge."

Greater Anglia apologized and promised reimbursement to inconvenienced passengers in a statement that read, "We are sorry for the disruption caused to customers between Norwich and Cambridge this afternoon." "Two trains were terminated early and one service started 20 minutes late. Anyone who has been delayed for more than 15 minutes can claim delay repay," the statement added.

It is unclear how the tortoise ended up on the track or how it got injured. However, Rail Anglia later clarified that the tortoise had gone missing from a nearby center and was already reunited with the owners.

A Network Rail spokesperson told The Independent on Monday evening that the tortoise had been taken to a local vet, but that there was no update on the animal's health.