A St. John's lawyer has filed a class-action lawsuit claiming the Newfoundland and Labrador government is responsible for injuries and deaths cause by road collisions with moose.
Lawyer Ches Crosbie claims the province's failure to control the moose population is to blame for the more than 700 moose-vehicle accidents reported annually.
Moose are not native to the island of Newfoundland.
"Wildlife practices of the defendant have allowed the moose population on the Island to reach numbers in the range of 120,000 to 200,000 … multiplying the danger of moose collisions for users of the highways," says a statement of claim filed Monday.
Two men, Hugh George, 59, and Ben Bellows, 54, are named as representative claimants in the statement of claim, which has not been certified as a class action.
Both men now use wheelchairs because of the injuries they suffered when their vehicles collided with moose on Newfoundland roads.
"Government made a decision to bring this non-native invasive species here about a hundred years ago," the statement of claim says. "Government has also avoided taking responsibility for managing the hazard it created."
None of the allegations in the statement of claim have been tested in court.
Crosbie claims the government needs to take action to protect drivers by reducing the moose population.
Crosbie said he will hold a news conference about the lawsuit Tuesday morning.
