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Elk totals police car, sends officers to hospital

Two police officers were taken to hospital in Skåne in southern Sweden on Saturday after their squad car collided with an elk.

Elk totals police car, sends officers to hospital

The accident occurred when the officers were responding to a call south of Hässleholm at around 4am in the morning as the officers were responding to a call.

Following the collision both the male and female officer were taken to hospital for treatment

”They were on their way to a case when the accident occurred. The elk ran into the car from the side and ended up on the roof,” said Marie Keismar Skåne county police officer on duty to TT.

Despite early reports suggesting otherwise, both were later released from hospital with minor injuries later that morning.

However, there was no information on the condition of the elk.

Elks are a major cause of accidents on Sweden’s roads. A report from 2008 revealed that year that collisions with game animals accounted for nearly 40,000 accidents on Sweden’s highways. Deer are generally the main culprits, with 30,982 collisions in 2008, followed by elks with 5,118.

Statistics are compiled regularly by the highways agencies, because road safety could be significantly improved if further measures are taken to stop animals getting onto the roads.

Crashing into an elk can be an expensive business as well. One report suggested that hitting an elk causes an average of 29,000 kronor ($4,600) in repair costs, compared with some 17,000 kronor if a car collides with a deer.

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