'Terrifying': Woman has close encounter with moose in Wildwood

A moose is loose in the streets of Winnipeg.

Manitoba Conservation officers are in the Crescent Park neighbourhood searching for a moose that was first reported walking through streets in the area late this morning.

Elinor Bruckshaw was waiting for a bus at the corner of Oakenwald Avenue and Wildwood Street around 10:30 a.m. when she says she was surprised to see the moose run past her at her bus stop.

"It came towards me at one point and I'm going, 'I'm going to die', because I'm terrified of moose," said Bruckshaw, 20, who quickly pulled out her smartphone and shot a video of the animal. "I wouldn't say [it was] charging — it trotted my way — but it's still a very large animal, so it was a bit intimidating.

"Moose are terrifying and unpredictable. I'm not a fan."

Bruckshaw said her encounter with the moose lasted a couple of minutes and ended when the animal ran into the roadway and nearly got hit by a car before heading off along its way on Wildwood Street.

"There was a car that kind of had to screech to a stop," said Bruckshaw, adding both the driver and the moose looked equally surprised to see each other. "[The moose] looked kind of freaked out, kind of not sure what to do. The driver looked just dumbfounded."

A spokesperson from Manitoba Conservation said the moose is a calf, and officers will either corral the animal or try get it to a space where they can safely immobilize it using a tranquillizer dart.

Manitoba Conservation says the moose was last spotted near the Crescent Drive Golf Course.

Winnipeg police had no update on whether or not the moose had been located late Friday.

Winnipeggers who spot the moose are advised not to get too close and to call the Winnipeg police non-emergency number at 204-986-6222 to report its whereabouts.