Dead Deer at Putnam Prairie

At approximately 12:14 p.m on Nov. 9., an officer was contacted by a UW-Eau Claire groundskeeper. That groundskeeper said a deceased whitetail deer had been located near Putnam Prairie with an arrow sticking out of it.

The officer went to the main entrance of Putnam Prairie and made contact with the groundskeeper. 

He advised the deceased deer was approximately 200 yards north of the main entrance, about four feet west of the path leading toward the Chippewa River.

The groundskeeper said he had not moved or manipulated the deer in any way.

The two traveled to the deer’s location, and the officer observed a deceased buck laying approximately 200 yards from the main entrance, just west of the path.

The officer saw a broken crossbow bolt near the deceased deer and an entry wound to the rear quarter of the deer.

The officer inspected further and found that the deer was cold and stiff to the touch, as if it had been there a while, as well as the smell of rotting flesh. The officer took photos of the deer, the arrow and the entry wound.

The officer searched the area and was unable to find any blood trail or indication of where the deer had been shot originally, although Eau Claire had experienced heavy rainfall the night before and the day the deer had been found.

The officer flipped the deer over to look for an exit wound. He saw a broadhead partially sticking out of the deer’s hide and took photos of it.

The officer requested that the groundskeeper bring the deer to Putnam Prairie’s main entrance so it could be inspected by a Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources warden.

The officer assisted the groundskeeper in securing the deer in an end loader and bringing it to the main entrance.

The officer exited Putnam Prairie and contacted the warden using the primary squad cell phone.

The officer introduced himself and explained the reason for contact. The warden said that he was unable to meet at that time. He requested that the officer take several photos of the deer and collect the broken arrow bolt for the warden to collect later that day.

The warden said the deceased deer could be disposed of at that time. The officer answered the warden’s questions and ended the phone contact.

The officer removed the front half of the crossbow bolt from the deer, then collected the broken arrow and placed it into a brown paper bag.

Stuck Elevator in McIntyre Library

On Nov. 9 at approximately 4:20 p.m., an officer was dispatched to a stuck elevator at McIntyre.

The Communications Center informed him that elevator cart No. 2 was stuck on the 5th floor with five occupants, none of which were injured.

The officer responded to McIntyre Library.

He arrived at the front desk and spoke with someone who stated that all the occupants made it out of the elevator safely.

They stated that elevator cart No. 2 was not functioning properly and requested that it be shut down. They stated that there was an issue with the same elevator several weeks ago.

The officer confirmed that the elevator was unoccupied, and the power was shut off to the elevator.

The officer entered a service car into the RMS system to have the elevator repaired.

Price can be reached at [email protected].