Barbara Lawlor

Nederland

Old Town residents say that the young female moose had been hanging out in the area for a few days. She was probably under a year old and weighed around 350 pounds.

On Thursday, February 9, 2017 around 3:45 p.m. the moose leaped onto the highway just before the turnoff to Eldora and ran into an SUV traveling south. The female driver didn't even see the moose until its head smashed the windshield and its body slammed into the side of the vehicle, breaking the driver side window.

The Nederland Fire Protection District and the Nederland Police Department responded to the scene. Boulder County Sheriff's deputy Steve Aubry had just pulled over to the side of the Eldora Road and says there is nothing the woman could have done to prevent the accident. She suffered from glass cuts when the side window shattered. NFPD chief Rick Dirr says the moose probably died instantly and didn't suffer.

Deputy Aubry pulled the animal off the road. NFPD EMT’s treated the driver and officers kept traffic moving as drivers slowed down to see what had happened.

Chief Dirr said that with the growing moose population interfacing with Ned’s residential areas, the accident was bound to happen.

"This should teach us to pay attention to what is happening on the side of the road, to expect the unexpected. It has happened to many of us, when an animal runs into the road and there is no avoiding hitting it. This is the first moose that has been hit in the middle of the day, which speaks to the moose's comfort level of being around humans. We want them to understand that humans aren't good to be around. Sometimes, though, there is just not anything you can do to avoid the collision."

A couple of residents processed the carcass and the meat will be donated for local food distribution.