Moose caught in power lines, hangs 50 feet in air



FAIRBANKS (AP) -- A bull moose was suspended 50 feet in the air after its antlers became tangled in a power line under construction southeast of Fairbanks.



The incident happened on October 5 on the Pogo Mine Road. The moose apparently became tangled in electrical wires while the line, under construction to the Teck Pogo gold mine about 80 miles southeast of Fairbanks, was close to the ground.



Workers noticed something wrong after tightening the line, and backtracked to find the moose hanging by its antlers.



The moose was alive when it was lowered to the ground, but Department of Fish and Game officials decided to kill it rather than tranquilize it before removing the wires.



Officials say they were worried the stressed moose would die and the drugged meat would not be salvageable.



"The only unfortunate part is we had to shoot the moose," said Gabriel Marian, president of City Electric Inc., the contractor erecting the power line to the mine. "It would be more of a feel-good story if we had let it down and it ran off."



The moose may have weighed as much as 1,200 pounds. Dave Davenport, a technician for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game in Delta Junction, said he is trying recover the antlers.



The workers believe the moose may have come across the sagging and swaying wires and decided to challenge the power line to a fight, as bull moose are known to do during the rut, or mating season.



"My guess is he was in full rut and probably seen that line moving out there," and decided to fight, said Marvin Pickens, line construction manager for City Electric in Anchorage.



Crews can lay up to five miles of line at a time before tightening it with a giant hydraulic winch, said Pickens.



The line is pulled through leaders on the crossties at the top of the power poles and then winched tight with as much as 5,000 pounds of pressure, he said.



"As you're pulling, it constantly droops up and down," said Pickens. "My guess is that he was right in the middle of one of the sections when it got pulled up."



The moose was likely suspended in the air for only a matter of minutes before workers investigated and found it, Marian said.



It was tangled in static, the half-inch cable that is strung up next to the power lines to serve as a lightning rod, said Pickens.



"I've been in this state 28 years and I've never seen anything like that," said Pickens. "City Electric has been in business for 52 years and never had an incident like this.



"I can't see how it could happen but it happened," he said.



Davenport talked to Karl Hanneman, manager of public and environmental affairs for Teck-Pogo, and made the decision to have City Electric workers shoot the moose, based on reports he got about the animal's condition.



Tranquilizing an animal at that point can be deadly, he said.



"If they're really wore down, they'll succumb to (the drugs) and die," Davenport said. "Then you can't salvage the meat because of the drugs in it."



The meat was donated to a local resident, he said.



City Electric workers tried in vain to free the moose once it was lowered to the ground, Marian said. The moose was thrashing about trying to free itself, posing a threat to anyone who got near.



A pair of photos showing the moose hanging by its antlers began circulating on the Internet on Thursday. State wildlife biologist Tom Seaton thought it was a hoax when he first saw the photos.



"If you believe in UFOs you might believe in this," Seaton said on Thursday. After being told the photo was authentic on Friday, Seaton was still skeptical.



"I still find it hard to believe," he said.



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You're slow son, tell us about an Elk hunt instead. derf

Found some pics here...
http://www.graybeardoutdoors.com/phpbb2/viewtopic.php?t=44220