On 12 September, in the state of New York, police carried out a special operation that had everything: a chase, aerial reconnaissance, several patrol units, and a suspect capable of reaching speeds of up to 50 km/h.
The suspect, however, turned out to be an emu.
The large flightless bird decided that life in a petting zoo had become too predictable and set off to explore the surroundings on its own.
The police took the escape seriously.
Officers set off after the fugitive on the ground, while a dronewas sent into the air to monitor the bird's movements from above.
The result was a scene worthy of a Hollywood action movie: several police officers chasing a huge emu through the neighborhood, a drone hovering overhead, and the long-legged protagonist clearly unable to understand why an ordinary stroll had attracted so much attention.
Emu versus police
The fugitive could not be underestimated.
Emus are large, fast birds and are quite capable of accelerating to roughly 50 km/h. So catching such a disturber of the peace on foot is a task of roughly the same order as trying to catch a very tall ostrich that has suddenly discovered a talent for marathon running.
For a while, the advantage was clearly on the bird's side.
But technology won out.
Thanks to the drone, the police officers were able to track the fugitive and eventually return it safely to its owners.
No fine, no report
The best part is that no one was hurt.
Neither the police officers, nor the local residents, nor the emu itself.
The police even joked separately that no fines or charges were brought against the fugitive.
True, one unresolved question remains: does it intend to try again?
So far, it is unknown.
But after so much attention, a drone, and several police officers running after it, the emu has probably already grasped the main thing:
if it is going to run away again, it first needs to learn to hide from aerial reconnaissance. 😄
