Firefighters rescue 40-stone woman trapped in bedroom

Joanne Ettienne, 45, from Tingley, told how firefighters had to smash down the walls of her bungalow to lift her out of her home after she got into difficulties last month.

The mother-of-three, who said her weight rose to 39-and-a-half stone after infections left her with restricted mobility, now faces a six-month stay in hospital.

Ms Ettienne said the emergency services launched a major rescue operation when paramedics were unable to remove her from her house without help.

She told the newspaper: "The firemen - there must have been 20 of them - had to come and they had to smash my bedroom door and then my bedroom wall and put barriers up to stop it crumbling.

"They lifted me out into the sitting room then they had to smash my sitting room wall and window so they could get me outside."

Ms Ettienne said she was living as a recluse and spent most of her time confined to her bed.

"I want to be able to get to the shops and look around but I can't even make myself a cup of tea," she said.

Ms Ettienne said she moved into her bungalow in 2007 and contracted a foot infection which spread to her legs and restricted her mobility. She said she gained more weight after catching MRSA, which left her partially paralysed and unable to move around her home.

Ms Ettienne is now in St James's Hospital, in Leeds, where she is being treated for infections in her legs and feet.