Helicopters and drones searched for a large cat in Saalekreis, Germany, with the area under a state of emergency. Now, all concerned parties are experiencing significant embarrassment.
An elementary, somewhat unclear footage caused anxiety across Germany throughout several days starting from last Friday night. The clip captures an animal moving stealthily among shrubs close to Geiseltalsee in Saalekreis, Germany.
The image captured by the council worker appeared sophisticated, big, and undeniably untamed. When the footage became popular online on Monday, Braunsbedra activated heightened vigilance. Could this be a cougar?
Spotting the puma
Officials first remained silent about the observation, but later the enthusiasm turned into widespread awareness.
It had an 80% chance of being a puma, "As explained by Sabine Faulstich, the local public order officer," the initial report occurred on Friday; however, alerts were not released until Monday due to the team needing additional details. Yet, after six more residents came forward with similar reports, the matter escalated beyond management.
Law enforcement officers, firefighters, drones, and a helicopter were deployed, with locals being alerted via emergency applications.
The walks were called off, dogs remained on short leashes, and the mobile command center located at the fire station served as the base for the search operations.
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The trail leads nowhere
Even after extensive search efforts using advanced technology, the animal remained unseen. There were no footprints, no signs of its presence. However, authorities had already prepared their strategy: should the creature be sighted, they intended to sedate it first before relocating it to Halle's Bergzoo.
There were no reports of animals escaping from zoos or circuses. Every identified animal caretaker was also verified, leaving people puzzled about its possible origin.
On Wednesday, the puma incident finally concluded. Mayor Steffen Schmitz formally declared it safe: the animal was much smaller than first believed, and surprisingly, the so-called big cat turned out to be a regular large-sized domestic cat!
Following several days of anxiety, it was revealed that there wasn't a puma at all. It was simply a misidentification involving a four-legged animal.
