When Damien Baguley spotted an emu in floodwater near Fullerton Cove, he was a tad worried it might be in a spot of bother.
Damien posted a photo he took of the emu on Facebook, saying "Anyone know who to call about this fella? Looks like he might be in trouble".
Damien, a musician with country music outfit The Viper Creek Band, called Wires but soon realised the emu was OK.
"Apparently that's Eric the emu. He likes to sit near the road to watch the cars. He can also swim like Ian Thorpe," he joked, in an update on his page.
Damien told Topics: "It would seem Eric is a bit of local legend. I had no idea."
He wasn't the only person concerned for Eric's welfare. Local rescue group Wildlife in Need of Care received dozens of calls.
Port Stephens MP Kate Washington also posted about the emu, saying: "Don't be like Eric - stay out of flood waters".
"But don't worry, Eric is OK."
Chris Miles posted on Kate's page that he was "concerned that poor old Eric has nothing to eat, as his paddock appears almost completely underwater".
"He would normally be feeding off the grass shoots, seeds and insects in his paddock."
Annie Jordan added that she was "disappointed to learn that Edwina the emu is actually called Eric".
Discussion then turned to whether Eric might consider a political career.
"If he ran for parliament, he would get 90 per cent of the vote," Tony Hoare quipped.
Eric was also spotted on the side of Nelson Bay Road.
"The only high ground for Eric the emu is the road reserve. Let's work together to keep Eric and each other safe," Port Stephens Council said on Facebook.
All this made us wonder whether emus eat eucalyptus leaves. If they did, someone would be making jokes about the need for gumboots.
And we do wonder what Eric must be thinking. Possibly something like: "Gee I wish I could fly".
Anyhow, apparently Eric is safe and back in his paddock at Williamtown. He's a bit of a mascot for the area.
As for Damien, he'll surely have to write a song about Eric.
Shark Warning
Our piece on Tuesday about a [digital] bull shark stuck in floodwater at Kempsey drew a response from the Hunter's favourite butcher, Steve Barnett.
"I was born in Kempsey and remember pop taking me fishing behind the old house in west Kempsey," Steve said.
"We would regularly see bull sharks in the river especially when the mullet were schooled up. I recall seeing one well upstream in the fresh water when bass fishing, so no doubt they would be in the many creeks around the Hunter.
"Just a warning to everyone over Easter - bull sharks will be along the beaches after an easy feed. Stay away until the waters clear."
