Elephant seal causes chaos in Point Lonsdale Victoria, trying to break into local service station
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Wild Moment: A huge seal wreaks havoc on the streets of a resort town as it roams the landscape and tries to break into a local gas station.
- The seal took a tour of the small vacation town on Friday.
- He came to the only gas station in the city.
- Hundreds gathered to catch a glimpse of the pinniped
- The elephant seal is believed to be a local legend named ‘Henry’
A huge seal has run amok in a small holiday village while taking a tour of the local landscape before attempting to break into its only service station.
The elephant seal came ashore on Friday afternoon as locals and tourists at Point Lonsdale, an hour and a half south of Melbourne, gathered along the shoreline to watch the traveling mammal.
Locals believe the harbor seal was none other than ‘Henry’, who has been visiting the area’s beaches for more than a decade.
A massive elephant seal (pictured) plummeted around the Victorian resort town of Point Lonsdale on Friday afternoon as hundreds crowded in for a look.
Authorities attended the scene, following the pinniped as it made its way up from the beach and across the roads toward the city.
Onlooker footage of the event showed the seal stopping traffic and making its way to a BP gas station.
He reportedly tried to break a window when he mistook his own reflection, mistaking it for another seal.
Authorities told the public to stay at least 30 meters away from the mammal, or 50 meters if they had a dog with them.
Police and conservationists were eventually able to lead the confused animal away from the crowd and toward the water by aggravating it so that it slowly pounced on a man as he backed into the water.
She eventually complied, slowly slipping into the water on the beach as hundreds gathered for one last look as she disappeared beneath the waves.
Making his way to the town’s only gas station, the seal, believed to be the local legend, ‘Henry’, eventually made it back to the beach after being guided by authorities.
“He came all that way only to realize the place wasn’t open,” one user commented in a video of the seal trip posted online.
“What a sight that would have been, but I’m happy this guy didn’t come to any harm and was safely guided back to where he belongs,” another commenter wrote.
One user joked about the seal encounter at the BP, saying: “Morning mate, can I pay for pump number 2 and order a meatloaf to go, thanks.”
“Looks like Point Lonsdale got the seal of approval,” wrote another.