A woman received six dead canaries after mail truck ran over her package.
As baffling as it would might seem, a woman from Alabama received a package containing six dead canaries. It’s not a joke, nor a message from an underground group saying that the protection tax is due – it’s simply what happens when you choose to employ the service of the Federal Post.
The woman from Alabama, later identified as being Rhonda King, ordered six beautiful canaries from an online shop and, as a method of delivery, the woman chose the postal service over a courier. Although the postal service is equipped to deliver any kind of package, regardless of its contents, it would seem that the woman had the misfortune of receiving a damaged package.
This wouldn’t be any problem had the package contained an object, but the parcel had live animals in it. And we need only imagine the woman’s reaction when she opened the bloody parcel which contained six crushed canaries.
As the woman recalls, the package arrived at the hair salon where she was working. The postmaster who delivered it said that her package was there, but that her birds were not alive. Upon opening the package, Rhonda King saw six dead canaries, crushed under a great weight.
A closer look at the package revealed a clearly-defined tire-like shape, which indicates that the package was run over, probably by the very mail car which delivered it. The woman said that she paid $600 for the six canaries, and an extra $100 to have them shipped overnight by US Post.
The canaries were meant to be a present for her 60th birthday. However, it would seem that it wasn’t meant to be. When questioned about their packaging policies, Debra Fetterly, the postal service’s official spokesperson, declared that the package addressed to one Rhoda King was compliant with the institution’s live cargo transportation policies – the package was marked accordingly, and there were air holes in the box’s sides.
However, even though the package met the US Post’s specifications, it would seem it wasn’t enough to ensure the safety of the bird. The US Post offered to reimburse the woman and conveyed a formal apology.
It would also seem that the six dead canaries are not the only victims of improper transportation procedures, as people from all over the country report received dead animals when opting for the postal transportation option.
Image source: Flickr