Elephants snacking on trees wake Canadian townsfolk

0 Comments | AFP, July, 2007

OTTAWA (AFP) — It was no dream. Two elephants seen roaming the streets of a sleepy town in central Canada in the wee hours of the morning had actually escaped from a traveling circus, police said Thursday.

The massive pachyderms, named Bunny and Suzy, had escaped from Garden Bros. Circus at about 3 a.m. in Newmarket, near Toronto, when an electric fence around their pen was inadvertently disabled.

Police said the elephants took a "stroll" around town and "snacked on several nearby trees," but did not cause any injuries or property damage.

An astonished resident awakened by their stomping and chewing before dawn notified police, who helped steer the animals back to their pen.

"Hi, um, we've found an elephant walking down the street," the unidentified...