An emu was lost in a Florida town, cops say. What was the flightless bird running from?
Did you see a lost emu?
According to the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office, one was on the loose in the orange groves near Avon Park, in Central Florida.
The agency’s Facebook page said it needed the public’s help in tracking it down, noting that it would be hard to catch.
“Did you know emus are very fast?” joked the caption with a blurry pic. “Definitely faster than us.”
Yes, indeed. An emu, a flightless bird originally from Australia, actually can run up to 30 mph.
Commenters couldn’t resist bringing on the jokes. Many naturally referred to the Liberty Mutual ads, which star LiMu; e.g. “Somebody call Doug at Liberty Mutual. His partner is loose.”
Others accustomed to seeing disturbing crime stories from the sheriff’s office likely appreciated the levity of the situation:
“Did ya try, ‘Here, birdy birdy.’ I heard it works.”
“Did you charge him with fleeing and evading?”
“Free the emu.”
Alas, the emu will not be free. As of Tuesday, the guy (or gal) was back home “safe and sound,” according to a spokeswoman from the sheriff’s office.
