Police raced to the site of a distress signal but found themselves in a field of grazing cows.
Only at nightfall when the beacon’s light was visible did someone in the search party find the unregistered EPIRB, which had fallen out of a helicopter during a cattle muster.
Australian police and rescue authorities urge people to register their rescue beacons to prevent wild goose (and other farm animal) chases.
Read more here:
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/apr/11/hungry-australian-cow-triggers-emergency-beacon-and-rescue-operation