"Hi, I am composing the email addresses from memory at Wellington Airport so hopefully they will work.

Re the bobby calf incident this morning, the people on the Tranzit 10:10 am bus are keen to have the incident well known, so here are the details from our perspective.

A bobby calf truck pulled out from the side road beside the Linton shop. The bus driver thought it was going to stop for him and was surprised when it didn't. Soon after we hit the road works near Camp Rd., and suddenly a Jersey calf fell out of the back of the truck in front of the bus. I saw the second one fall and I thought at first that the truck had hit an orange cone - but it was another calf. The bus had to stop for the first calf and a passenger guided it off the road.

Thereafter it was a nightmare of following the truck down the road, unable to do anything, as calf after calf fell from the back door of the truck. We couldn't catch up with the truck as we were having to swerve all over the road (slowly) avoiding the calves. Most stood up, but there were calves clearly with broken legs, a broken back and at least one that must have been killed instantly.

There were somewhere between 12 and 20 calves that fell, by our guestimate.

On the bus, the 20 or so people were very distressed and a number were crying. As well as the driver and me, at least two others used their cellphones to try to get help. We were also angry at the driver for not looking in his mirror, and because we were helpless to assist the very young calves.

It seemed like driving into a carnage.

I had to ring my brother Bruce at work to get him to look up the Standard's number to ring you, as we didn't want the matter to be ignored. I hope the SPCA gets involved too.

The truck pulled off at the Linton Church, and that was the last we saw of falling calves, but the driver told us he later heard on the News that the road had been closed because of it.

We obviously knew the 'bobby calf truck' well when I was growing up on our dairy farm, but there is no justification for experiencing this. Even by an accident or mistake. I hope the calves that survived are allowed to live.

Other than that, we are en route to Norway to my brother's wedding on Aug. 17th, at the church our great grandparents married in in 1868 before emigrating to PN in 1871. For obvious reasons, it is therefore not a good idea to publicise the fact that my house is unoccupied by publishing my name - or at least my surname.

I just read your bobby calf article online. I'm interested that only one (calf) had to be put down. Did anyone ask how many were already dead when they were reached? The one that appeared (from the moving bus) to have a broken back had its lower body at right angles to its upper body - as if its back legs were paralysed and it could only move its upper half. The one lying flat on the road looked rather dead to those on the bus. These animals mostly fell from a moving vehicle doing about 80-100 kms, so a person falling similarly would suffer rather badly I would think.

Another passenger was a woman from the PN Open Learning Centre. I've forgotten her name for now, but they certainly will know her!!! We were talking after it all happened if you seek further info from the bus.

Have the SPCA been involved yet?

Apart from that, I was emailed the original article (and phoned it as well). That was okay about my name with no ref. to being away at present - for the sake of the house back home.

Instead (of the NZ Lundy double murder media fascination for a change) it is the Norwegian media that is fascinated by our presence. Two papers so far re the strange Kiwis going to Norway for a wedding in an old (beautiful) church. It reminds us of the Anderson Cottage in Clifton Tce.