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Video: Osprey flies away after being cut free from power line

A screengrab from a video posted to BC Hydro's social media of an osprey entangled in twine caught on a power line. A screengrab from a video posted to BC Hydro's social media of an osprey entangled in twine caught on a power line.
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A Merritt, B.C. resident spotted an osprey hanging upside down from a power line earlier this week, and the animal’s successful rescue was posted to social media.

The “frantic” bird had gotten its talons tangled in some baling twine that was caught on the power lines, BC Hydro explained in a Tweet.

“After quickly developing a plan to safely release the bird, our power line technicians accessed the line via bucket truck,” the corporation told CTV News in an email.

The crew then used a live line stick with a knife blade attached to it to cut the twine and free the bird.

As seen in the video, when the osprey is cut free from the twine, it immediately swoops and then soars far away.

The osprey got stuck up there because it was building a nest on top of the pole, BC Hydro explained.

The crew removed the twine from the pole top, and will be moving the nest to a special nesting platform – which are built in situations like these – before the line is re-energized.

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