Road crews paint a white line over a “rather large” dead raccoon on the side of a Memphis street
- Photographed by a driver on his way to work Wednesday, the animal, a run-over raccoon, had a line painted across it by a seemingly ignorant city employee
- Richie EsQuivel was the one who saw the scene, and said he had to do a double take when he saw what looked like a new line of paint adorning the animal
- The photo taken by EsQuivel shows how the stripe served as a continuation of a new paint line laid across the city to draw attention to the start of the shoulder
While raccoons are normally known for their distinctive striped tails, one unfortunate creature has gone viral for a different kind of marking: a huge white line painted across its body by road crews.
Photographed by a driver on his way to work in Memphis Wednesday, the animal, which was unfortunately hit and killed by the side of the road, was not moved in time before city officials drove by and painted it.
Richie EsQuivel was the one who saw the disturbing scene and said he had to do a double take when he saw what looked like a new line of paint adorning the animal.
“It looked like it might have been there for a few days,” EsQuivel said. “It’s pretty big and hard to miss.”
The dead raccoon is still there early Friday and will be removed later in the morning, city officials said — hopefully with a more respectful broadcast. Speaking to WREG Thursday, EsQuivel recalled how he came across the bizarre display.
Photographed by a driver on his way to work in Memphis Wednesday, the animal, an already run-over raccoon, had a line painted over it by a seemingly ignorant city employee
Memphis motorist Ruchie EsQuival made the discovery Wednesday morning on a stretch of this street near Knight Arnold Road. City officials have since promised to remove the raccoon sometime Friday morning
“I hadn’t taken a Getwell in a few weeks,” EsQuival recalled of the discovery, which happened early Wednesday on a stretch of street near adjacent Knight Arnold Road.
“I think my first thought was it’s a little wild,” he added. “Not something you see every day.”
Apparently more observant than the city’s road crews, EsQuival said he caught a glimpse of the “quite large” animal behind the wheel and got out of his vehicle to investigate.
He was soon confronted by the animal’s deformed corpse and posted a photo as proof on social media.
Speaking to WREG — which later published the photo of EsQuival’s find — the Memphis man marveled at how the raccoon went unnoticed before, citing its size and conspicuous placement by the side of the road.
A spokesman for the city has since confirmed that crews will remove the deceased animal sometime Friday morning.
Until then, the inconspicuous road function will continue to exist.