Emu corralled after jaunt through traffic

TUSTIN, Calif. (AP) — It’s not every day you see a 6-foot-tall bird running in traffic.

But Tustin police say that was the report Tuesday morning when an emu got loose from a backyard pen.

The Orange County Register (http://bit.ly/1trRZVY ) says officers were called to a quiet residential area shortly before 11:30 a.m.

By the time they got there, neighbors had safely corralled the big bird and returned it to a pen it shares with two other emus.

A police statement says there was no threat to public safety.

The emu is a flightless Australian bird that resembles an ostrich. It’s the second-largest bird in the world after the ostrich and can sprint at up to 30 mph.

Authorities say it’s legal to own emus in Orange County with the proper zoning.

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Information from: The Orange County Register, http://www.ocregister.com

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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