Now for a follow up story On the deer jumping to their death off an Elk County overpass.
Penndot has yet to announce a tentative plan to prevent deer from getting on the overpass.
Last month Douglas Braff first showed you the grizzly scene beneath the road and he visited the scene in Johnsonburg again speaking with a resident owning property next to the overpass.
The residents I spoke with last time say they haven’t seen more deer leap to their deaths from this overpass. But Bill Boylan says never say never.
“You know, we’re standing right here, so we better be careful, you never know. You know, Murphy’s Law, if something bad could happen, it will.”
Boylan owns property just next the overpass for US 219. He and others say they want at least some sort of fence or netting along it. Since we last talked, he tells me Penndot did send somebody down to look at the situation.
“But they sent him down to say they wanted him to look it over. I guess I was a little disappointed that they didn’t send their engineer or Tom Zurat. Hadn’t had any contact with them. So, we did have a good discussion up there as to possibly where the deer coming out. I know where that’s at. If they want to talk to me, then more than welcome to talk to me about it.”
However
“Deer is one thing”
The overpass cuts through a populated residential area. Boylan says another reason for fencing is the occasional debris falling from the overpass onto his property and the sidewalk below.
“A lot of debris came off this bridge onto this roadway and the sidewalk.”
“But the big concern is, you know, that’s 60 feet high. Something comes off that bridge God forbid you know, there’s a kid or a car or something down below.”
In a statement to us, Penndot says it’s spoken to area residents and Johnsonburg officials “as to why the deer are winding up on the bridge.” Also mentioning they’ve been in touch with the Game Commission, Penndot says it does
“not have an exact time table.”
However, another concern is one that’s rotting away but won’t go away on its own.
“Obviously when it gets warmer, there’s gonna be a there’s people that live on the other side of that area, where those deer came off on that side of the bypass and they’re concerned about, you know, the smell and the sight. A lot of people walk, they walk through there with their dogs.”
The same carcasses have sat there since our first report last month.
“Penndot nor the Game Commission. I don’t know whose job that is. I know I’m not gonna do it, but they are still there.”
Penndot told us that it “would be responsible for removing dead deer” on or next to state owned roads. The Game Commission was not available for comment.
