This runaway emu locked down two schools with his antics

Just like the Paul McCartney song “Band On The Run,” an emu is on the run in Odessa, Delaware, and wreaking havoc all over the town (population: 369).

The News Journal reports that the emu’s been on the run for over two whole months, and no one knows whose emu it is. One emu-friendly Delaware resident, Matt Chapman, has some experience catching emus, and offered advice to any would-be emu catchers:

On an earlier occasion, he said, he used one of his three-wheeler vehicles, ran up alongside another wayward emu, jumped off and tackled it.

He doesn’t recommend that strategy. “That hurt a little bit,” he said.

Okay, don’t jump out of a moving vehicle to catch the emu. Got it.

Over at Spring Meadow Early Childhood Center and Old State Elementary on Monday, the Associated Press reports, folks spotted the runaway emu rampaging through their premises, forcing the Appoquinimink School District to call for a “soft lockdown,” meaning teachers and children were told to remain indoors while the emu ran free.

Orders have been given to shoot the emu if public safety becomes an issue.

UPDATE: EMU CAUGHT!

Michael Rosen is a reporter for Fusion based out of Oakland.