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Roaming Moose 'Emil' Closes Austria's Westbahn for Hours Near St. Pölten

Officials cleared the route by guiding the moose with a slow shunting locomotive.

Overview

  • ÖBB and police halted trains for safety after the animal stood on a rail embankment on the Vienna–western Europe corridor.
  • A shunting locomotive advanced at walking speed to coax the moose to move on without causing harm.
  • Service resumed shortly before 1:00 a.m. Sunday following a closure that lasted more than four hours.
  • Onlookers gathered earlier in St. Pölten, and a local animal welfare group urged people to keep their distance to avoid panic and accidents.
  • Austria has no native moose population, and experts cited in media say the roughly three-year-old likely dispersed from the Czech Republic or Poland.