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Vandals endanger Brooms Head emu population

Signs warning motorists of a known emu crossing have come under attack again, leaving locals shaking their head

Damaged emu warning signs on Brooms Head road.
Damaged emu warning signs on Brooms Head road.

WITH the coastal emu population believed to be at dangerously low levels, Brooms Head residents have taken measures to ensure motorists pay attention around known road crossing areas.

So it was with dismay they have found their signs warning of the emu crossing destroyed in what they said is a vandal attack.

And it's not the first time.

RELATED: Fighting a losing battle for our coastal emus

"It really makes you shake your head," Brooms Head resident Steve Otton said. "I had gone to put some new signs up last week and found that someone had trashed half of them.

"The same thing happened when the emus were active a year or so before."

Mr Otton said that there was clear evidence that it was a deliberate act, with councils signs also deliberately knocked over.

Damaged emu warning signs on Brooms Head road.
Damaged emu warning signs on Brooms Head road.

"You can see where the car went to the grass right to the side, then lean out and break them. They rip them right off the road sticks."

Mr Otton said they were at a loss as to why someone wouldn't want the emu population protected.

RELATED: Have you seen a coastal emu? Report it here

"It's a known spot for emu crossings … and it's not just the emu that could get killed, but if someone overtakes and an emu comes, it could be a person," he said.

"Whenever I drive through there I just hope I don't see feathers."

Mr Otton said there had been reports of a couple of emus that had been wandering through the spots near cane fields at Taloumbi, on the road to Brooms Head, and believed they might be nesting.

Mr Otton said a new group, the Lions Club of Clarence - Environment had written to council's traffic committee urging them to make the area an 80 km/h zone with double yellow lines.

"We'd also like to see a painting on the road as they have with a koala corridor past Lismore so that people have a clear idea of where they are," Mr Otton said.

Koala Zone signs painted on the road near Lismore that locals say would help Brooms Head road emu population.
Koala Zone signs painted on the road near Lismore that locals say would help Brooms Head road emu population.

"It will go before their August meeting, and if the submission goes well, it could be a start to helping them."

In the meantime, Mr Otton has replaced the signs, this time in plywood instead of poly, and hopes this time the warning signs will stay longer for the sake of the small emu population.

One of the new signs Steve Otton has made to replace vandalised signs
One of the new signs Steve Otton has made to replace vandalised signs

Originally published as

Original URL: https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/grafton/vandals-endanger-brooms-head-emu-population/news-story/870467daafe31cbdaf2c9f2517ee4b93