Emergency officials rescued two of three elk that fell through the ice of a residential pond near Snowmass on Monday morning.
One of the elk died.
“They cut a path in the ice about four feet wide and 25 feet long with chainsaws and allowed the elk to come to the shore,” said Deputy Alex Burchetta of the Pitkin County Sheriff’s Office. “The elk were in there for about two hours or so and by the time we were able to get the ice free and them to the shoreline one of (the elk) was unable to make it and died.”
The sheriff’s office was first called to the scene about 8 a.m. by a homeowner.
“You could tell they had been treading water for a while,” Burchetta. “They were agitated.”
An early photo from the pond showed the elk stuck in frigid waters, emergency responders wearing life jackets working around them on ladders. The sheriff’s office also released a photo of one of the elk being led out of the pond.
The Aspen Fire Department and Colorado Department of Wildlife also assisted in rescuing the elk.
A herd of roughly 20 elk late last month.
Jesse Paul: 303-954-1733, jpaul@denverpost.com or twitter.com/JesseAPaul
