Escaped emu sparks media frenzy in Mäntyharju

An escaped emu called Mr Hoo is being searched for with a drone in the forests around Mäntyharju, Yle reported. The 32-year-old bird fled its enclosure at Kuvala farm on Saturday.

Jarmo Savolainen will use a drone on Wednesday evening to search the borderlands between South Savo and Kymenlaakso. The search was requested by entrepreneur Heidi Haajanen, whose daughter found emu feathers seven kilometres from the farm.

Haajanen said the search would help determine whether Mr Hoo is somewhere in the Repovesi forests.

Savolainen said he was not familiar with the Repovesi region, although he had previously visited Haajanen’s farm to see the emus. He planned to ask Haajanen where the bird had last been seen and do his best to locate it.

Haajanen said Mr Hoo should be able to cope in the autumn forest even if its escape continues. There is still plenty of food available, and the bird is accustomed to cold nights.

“It won’t get cold. It has also been outside in winter,” Haajanen said.

The escape has attracted intense media attention. Haajanen and her husband, Janne, have received frequent calls since news of the disappearance became public.

“The media interest has completely surprised us. Sometimes we wonder whether we are in a hidden-camera programme,” Heidi Haajanen said, laughing.

One tabloid newspaper also came to search for the emu, bringing toast and salads. Haajanen has previously said that Mr Hoo particularly likes toast and salad.

She said the incident had made her laugh more than she had laughed throughout the previous summer. Her children have also been surprised by the media coverage but have taken it with humour.

Savolainen said the fugitive had created a bigger media phenomenon in Mäntyharju than the lion reported in Ruokolahti in the 1990s. He noted, however, that there was one obvious difference between the cases.

“The emu definitely exists, because it has been at Kuvala farm for more than 30 years.”

The owners do not know exactly what prompted the bird to escape now. Its mating season is not currently underway.