Deer rots at roadside for five days

Julie Kenwell • Published 11 Oct 2012 13:00 0 Comments

A DEER knocked down by an unlucky motorist last Wednesday evening was left to rot for over five days before a Council-employed contractor successfully collected its remains.

Caroline Latimer from the Snowhill says her husband had contacted Fermanagh District Council the day after her car collided with the animal on the road close to her home.

But by Tuesday this week it had still not been removed from the grass verge.

Left for nature to take its course, Caroline says the carcass' remains were beginning to smell.

Speaking to The Impartial Reporter on Monday this week, she said other wildlife feeding from it had pulled it onto the road, causing an obstruction.

"Last Wednesday evening at around 7pm the deer ran out in front of my outside my lane," she explained, "It caused quite a lot of damage to my car but I killed the poor thing.

"My husband rang the next day to see if the Council could to come and take the deer away and dispose of it. But

they said they have never done so.

"You want to see the state of it at the moment -- the buzzards and magpies and wildlife have pulled it out onto the road. Half of its back is completely gone and it is starting to smell. It's very noticeable on the road, particularly with the amount of wildlife around it. A car would slow down coming up to it and move around it.

"It has been there a few days now and it cannot be hygienic."

Director of Technical Services at the Council, Gerry Knox, insists the call-out had been actioned.

Referring to a notice posted on the Council's internal system, he said a contractor had been instructed to collect the carcass after the report was logged at around 2.08pm on Thursday last.

"The notice here says it was not there when he went out to lift it," explained Mr Knox, "If it's still there then the information given here is either wrong or it wasn't looked for in the right place."

The Director said the Council was not shirking from its responsibilities in the slightest, adding that his department receives numerous call outs to lift dead animals.

"With deers knocked down like this, quite frequently they are picked up before we get there," he said, "We had one at Mountdrum and when we went to pick it up, it was also gone, It has happened with other animals as well.

"We automatically assumed that in this case it was picked up.

"But what is important to make clear is that we did react to this call out and we respond to any call-outs of fallen animals."

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This article appeared in Impartial Reporter 11 Oct 12

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