Source: Radio New Zealand
A dead cow washed up on Island Bay Beach in Wellington. Caitlin Dalzell / supplied
A dead cow has washed up on Island Bay Beach in Wellington, following the thunderstorm and heavy rain that hit the region in the early hours of Monday.
Island Bay woman Caitlin Dalzell said she first saw something on the beach when she was walking her dog on Wednesday morning.
“I didn’t know what it was initially and I ran through the options – none of them were great. I thought it was most likely a whale or a seal, but to be honest I was really concerned it might have been a person.”
She was very surprised to see it was in fact a dead cow, as there were no farms nearby.
“If it had come down the Hutt River it would have had to come quite a long way. So I imagine it’s washed over from the Wairarapa, but I’m just guessing.”
A dead cow washed up on Island Bay Beach in Wellington. Caitlin Dalzell / supplied
She said it looked like it had been in the water for quite a while, and the carcass was starting to come apart.
Wellington City Council said the cow had been reported, and it had sent park rangers to assess the situation and dispose of the animal as soon as possible.
It said in the meantime, people should keep clear of the carcass and ensure dogs were kept on leads.
Dalzell said that was upsetting, as her family had not been able to swim at the beach for most of the summer due to the damaged Moa Point treatment plant pumping untreated sewage into the sea.
“We really live on the beach, I’ve got four kids that I’m raising in the area and we do surf lifesaving with all of them. Now it’s just another thing I’m going to have to think about – whether the slash on the beach is safe. “
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
