A HAMPSHIRE firefighter on a 999 call had a python thrust at him by a householder furious that his pet snake had been woken by a fire engine.

James Edwards was outraged that his beloved python Isobel had been scared by fire-fighters responding to a blaze in the middle of the night near his home, Southampton magistrates were told.

The 27-year-old stormed out of his flat with the 5ft snake wrapped round his arms to plead with fire-fighters to switch their blue flashing lights off.

He marched up to the fire engine and thrust the snake towards fire officer Tony Dorey who was in the cab.

Little did he know Mr Dorey was petrified of snakes – and was so shaken by the black and brown reptile writhing towards him that he phoned the police.

Prosecutor Kelly Wickens said: “He was frightened because he did not know what kind of snake it was.”

Southampton magistrates heard how Edwards was upset as his two-year-old snake had begun striking its head on the wall of its tank because of the lights and noise. Firefighters were dealing with a small fire in a trailor which took 20 minutes to deal with.

Miss Wickens added: “He took the snake outside to show the firemen what they had done to it.

“He thought the firemen had frightened the snake and so he thought he would frighten them with it.”

Edwards, 27, unemployed, of Harwood Court, Marryat Road, New Milton, pleaded guilty to using threatening words and behaviour to cause alarm and distress to Mr Dorey during the incident on January 11 at 12.30pm. Magistrates ordered him to compensate Mr Dorey, a retained firefighter based at New Milton, with £100 and pay £85 court costs.

Magistrate Kevin Jones said: “You are sorry. Nevertheless there is a member of the fire service who has a difficult time at the best of times.

“To that individual to have a snake put in front of him must have put a lot of fear into him.”

Barry Keele, defending Edwards, said: “He was upset at his snake being disturbed and foolishly went out with the snake. It was a constrictor snake but he appreciated that Mr Dorey would not appreciate that at the time.”

Speaking outside court, Edwards said that Isobel had died two days later and he links it to the fright of that night.

He said: “It was terrified. I had never seen anything like it before. The vibrations and sounds travelled through the flat. The snake was stressed out.”

A Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service said it took the incident seriously. Its spokesman said: “Firefighters respond to emergencies in different situations and need co-operation from the public to support them in their jobs.”