x
Breaking News
More () »

Wandering Wayne County Emu Spotted

DYBERRY TOWNSHIP — An emu that has been on the loose in Wayne County was spotted roaming free on Friday morning.

DYBERRY TOWNSHIP -- An emu that has been on the loose in Wayne County was spotted roaming free on Friday morning.

The large flightless bird has been seen wandering in the area for a few days.

It was spotted Friday morning near the Himalayan Institute near Honesdale.

Standing about 5 feet tall, walking into oncoming traffic, and on the loose for nearly a week, this unabashed emu has caused quite a scene outside the Himalayan Institute, just north of Honesdale.

Brian Fulp, the director of the institute, has been looking out for the large bird's safety.

"I've been 20 twenty years. The institute has been here 40 years this year, and we have never had anything that caused so much ruckus on campus. But this emu is hot. He's got two legs, he's strong, he's fast," Fulp said.

Fulp tells Newswatch 16 the emu has been wandering for most of the week in that part of Wayne County.

Fulp believes the original owner in Wayne County sold the bird to someone and it got loose.

Fulp decided to help the loose emu after people stopped in the middle of the road to take pictures.

Volunteers say the emu went from a ditch then into the road when they tried to corral it into a trailer. It escaped and ran into the woods.

"We had this guy surrounded so we got the truck we were going to load him into. We all are locking hands and walking towards it and we get right up to the edge and again he turns into the transformer thing, turns into turkey size and shoots under our arms," Fulp said.

Danielle Ruffalo has seen the large bird's footprints all over her yard.

"It's a little disoriented," Ruffalo said. "I do feel bad and I feel like it's lost and it needs help but it's very hard to get a hold of it."

"It's a beautiful bird you. it's massive so we are hoping someone will step up and take advantage and take care of a beautiful bird and do the humanitarian thing at the same time," Fulp added.

Late Friday afternoon, the emu was shot with a tranquilizer and taken to Claws 'N' Paws Wild Animal Park near Lake Ariel.

Before You Leave, Check This Out