n Alaska, a shocking video of a garbage truck chasing a moose down a snowy street in Anchorage has the locals fired up.
The video, which was originally posted to popular neighborhood app Nextdoor, shows a Northern Waste garbage hauling truck clearly pursuing the scared moose down the residential street.
The driver honks aggressively as the animal bounds away, a scene that was recorded in totality by someone who lives on the street.
The original poster captioned the short clip: ‘Who taught this driver that this was okay?? I called Northern Waste and sent this video to them, they were not happy.’
The 20-second film circulated on social media over the holiday weekend and has led to the investigation by the Alaska wildlife authorities into potential wildlife harassment, as well as the termination by Northern Waste of the ‘rogue employee.’
The company said it has a ‘zero-tolerance policy for recklessness and hazing of wildlife.’
‘We were disgusted by this one person’s bad decision and in our eyes we took the highest level of disciplinary action promptly,’ said a spokesperson for the company.
According to Anchorage wildlife biologist for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game Cory Stantorf, who spoke with the Anchorage Daily News, said it is against Alaskan law to ‘harass or unnaturally change an animal’s behavior.’
The agency, he added, is in the beginning stages of an investigation.
A spokesman for the Alaska Wildlife Troopers said: ‘The Alaska Wildlife Troopers are aware of the video and are investigating to determine if any Alaska laws or regulations were violated.’
‘At this time, no citations have been issued. he Alaska Wildlife Troopers would like to remind Alaskans that moose may aggressively defend low snow spaces they occupy during this record-setting snow season and to not approach a moose on a plowed sidewalk or trail unless it’s clear the animal has moved far off.’
The owners of Northern Waste, a waste hauling company established in 2017, said they are putting their remaining employees through training with the Fish and Game department to ensure prevention of future encounters like the one documented above.
‘We’ve not had to deal with this type of thing ever. We are going to communicate and participate in any way that’s required,’ said a representative of the company.
‘We appreciate that everyone brought this to our attention.’
This article by Sophie Mann was first published by The Daily Mail on 3 January 2024. Lead Image: Courtesy of Grand Teton.
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