>>/168823/
cont...

UPDATE 10:29 a.m.
The Ostrich cull at a farm in Edgewood, B.C. was completed by "professional marksmen," the Canadian Food Inspection Agency said Friday morning. "After consulting with experts experienced in managing ostrich disease outbreaks, the CFIA concluded that the most appropriate and humane option was to use professional marksmen in a controlled on-farm setting. All depopulation activities were completed under CFIA veterinary supervision." The CFIA said this method is consistent with Canadian Veterinary Medical Association and American Veterinary Medical Association recommendations and may be used as required, particularly when other methods are impractical.
Farm supporter Janice Tyndall, 72, said she listened to it intermittently for a couple hours before she "couldn't stomach it anymore" and left the scene. The farmer from Salmon Arm, B.C., was back in her car near the property around midnight when she heard the shooting start again. "I'm thinking, 'they're still shooting? How could they still be shooting?'" she said. She said the gunfire varied, with some "lower bangs" and others higher, "like somebody with a high-powered rifle." Bright floodlights and the bales obscured what was happening inside the enclosure after dark, while supporters of the farm gathered at a highway overlooking the field, screaming at the CFIA to stop the cull. The CFIA said it will remain on site while they continue with disposal, and demobilization of their operation. "The premises is still quarantined under the Health of Animals Act. Permission from the CFIA is required to enter property covered by existing search warrants, which includes areas of the farm subject to biocontainment requirements," the CFIA said in a statement. While the CFIA completes its work, RCMP will remain at the farm. They did not otherwise take an active role in the cull. “The CFIA cull exercise was paused by the RCMP in order to allow for shift change of our security team,” said Staff Sgt. Kris Clark. “Once our safety concerns were addressed, CFIA contractors were allowed to proceed. With our oversight of safety protocols, no one was injured during the dynamic portion of the CFIA operation, and no arrests were made.” Clark said there had been "weeks of threats and intimidation towards CFIA agents and contractors" and that reinforced that RCMP presence was necessary to keep the peace and ensure overall safety.
Upon completion of the cull, the road was fully reopened.

UPDATE 8:22 a.m.
A holding pen at a B.C. farm that was filled with ostriches on Thursday now appears still and empty of live birds, the morning after Canadian Food Inspection Agency workers started their cull of the flock. Instead, the pen is filled with long blue tarpaulins covering objects on the ground that are also shrouded with black sheeting. The scene comes after numerous gunshots were heard overnight from inside the pen made of a high wall of hay bales, where staff with the agency had herded scores of the ostriches a day earlier. Bright floodlights and the bales obscured what was happening inside the enclosure after dark had fallen. But the CFIA says it is moving forward to "complete depopulation and disposal" of the flock, fulfilling an order it issued more than 10 months ago in an avian flu outbreak that went on to kill 70 of the birds. The owners of the farm near Edgewood in southeastern B.C. fought the order, but on Thursday the Supreme Court of Canada declined to hear their final appeal, lifting a stay on the cull. By nightfall, two RCMP vehicles were blocking the road leading to the area where supporters have been gathering at the farm, with officers turning people away, but on Friday the road was clear. A worker carrying a long bag had been seen entering the enclosure Thursday afternoon, where two tent-like structures had been set up. The farm's owners have said the cull was unnecessary because the flock was healthy and had "herd immunity," making them valuable for scientific research, while requesting that the birds be tested for infection.