Feeding turkey leads to her tragic demise
Every day, police officers respond to reports of all sorts of events and nonevents, most of which never make the news. Here is a sampling of lesserknown — but no less noteworthy — incidents from police log books (a.k.a. blotters) in our communities.
IT COULD HAVE BEEN PREVENTED
Why don’t people listen? Despite multiple warnings from Andover authorities, someone kept on feeding a wild turkey named Henrietta and it ultimately led to her demise. Henrietta became something of a local celebrity when she started loitering at a certain street corner in town and causing problems for drivers at the busy intersection. Authorities had been trying to tell motorists to stay in their cars and resist the urge to chase the turkey away, and just as important, not to feed her. “Lots of you have already seen Henrietta as she has apparently proclaimed herself the mascot of the intersection at Haverhill and Lowell [streets] here in town,” the Animal Control Department wrote on Facebook on
Jan. 18. “What Henrietta doesn’t realize is how much people care about her. We’ve gotten dozens of calls concerned about Henrietta’s well-being and the fact that she is in a very odd, and potentially dangerous, location.” Witnesses also reported seeing Henrietta eating birdseed on the sidewalk, which explained why she was sticking around the intersection. “Feeding her is doing her more of a disservice than leaving her be,” the same agency wrote on Facebook on Jan. 23. “She absolutely will not leave if she has a food source. Please help spread this word so she leaves the intersection and goes off to a neighborhood where she can continue to live her turkey life and hopefully find another flock to join.” But a full month later, Henrietta was still snacking on seed. “Henrietta is attracted to this seed and it is exactly what is causing her to stay in this intersection causing her to block traffic and is putting people in danger while driving,” the department wrote on Feb. 23. “If you see anyone leaving food down in this area, please contact Animal Control immediately so we can put a stop to it.” Unfortunately, people continued to feed her birdseed and nuts, and it appeared some people driving by were throwing bagels, doughnuts, and even cans of tuna out of their cars. Sadly, Henrietta died when she was hit by a car on March 11. “Feeding Henrietta is ultimately the reason she had lost her life. Wild animals have their own freedom to move where they please and had she not been fed, she would have moved on to another location (likely someone’s yard with a bird feeder) and have been safe,” the department wrote the day after she died. “Hopefully Henrietta’s legacy will live on in people’s memories, but also serve as a reminder that feeding wildlife can do more harm than good.”
VALENTINE’S DAY MIX-UP
On Feb. 14, police in Sandwich got a strange call about a misplaced suitcase. “This sounds like something out of one of those zany spy movies,” police wrote on Facebook. “A woman called to report her friend had put their suitcase in the wrong car at church that morning. They asked for the call to be logged in case someone happened to realize that there was a mystery suitcase in their car.”
LUCKY ESCAPE
Just after 2:30 a.m. on March 9, police responded to a report of a car that had gone into the water on Reservoir Street in Holden. When police arrived, the two occupants of the vehicle already had gotten out and were safe on land. They were taken to the hospital to be evaluated. Police shared a photo of the submerged car with its lights still on, eerily illuminating the water’s surface from below. A towing company responded and pulled the vehicle out with the help of the Holden Fire Department.
LOST AND FOUND
Did you or someone you know recently lose a drone on Cape Cod? Police recently posted about a drone discovered in Yarmouth after making a rough landing. “This DJI Mavic drone was found in a cranberry bog off West Yarmouth Road,” police wrote on Facebook on Feb. 26. “If you lost your drone in a flat spin and have the controller and proof of ownership, we might be able to pair up Maverick and Goose again and get you back in the air.” To claim the device, contact evidence technician Kelly Lowe at 508-775-0445 (follow the prompts to reach her) or send an email to klowe@yarmouth.ma.us.
STORROWED
At about 12 p.m. on Feb. 17, MBTA Transit Police responded after a trash truck got wedged underneath a bridge on West Street in Walpole. Thankfully, no injuries were reported but the driver was cited and — as expected — traffic was disrupted until the truck was extricated and the bridge was inspected for damage.