Driver who hit moose still unaccounted for

HERSEY – Just after 8 a.m. Tuesday, the Aroostook County Sheriff’s Department received a report that a vehicle had struck a moose on Route 11.

When Sgt. Kris Miller of the Sheriff’s Department arrived on the scene, she found a moose – but not the vehicle that hit it.

Investigators continued to gather information Tuesday afternoon as they tried to determine who struck and killed the moose.

Miller said police received a call about the accident from an off-duty New Hampshire police officer at 8:12 a.m.

The officer didn’t see the accident, but stopped at the scene when he saw the dead moose and a truck off to the side of the road.

The driver of that vehicle was not the person who hit the moose but had stopped at the scene when he saw the animal.

“The person who did hit the animal apparently just hit it and kept right on going,” said Miller. “There were no witnesses.”

Police are looking for the vehicle to determine if the accident was reportable – that is, if more than $1,000 in damage was done to the vehicle. If so, the person could be charged with leaving the scene of an accident.

At this point, Miller said, police are not sure if the driver even realized he had struck the animal. The sergeant noted that large tractor-trailers use Route 11, and the driver of a big rig might not have known he hit the moose.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Sheriff’s Department at 532-3471.