Cotswold village mourns tragic deaths of popular geese George and Mildred in heart-breaking crash
A Cotswolds[1] community is devastated following the tragic death of two beloved geese, George and Mildred, who were killed in a road accident. A Go Fund Me Page has been set up in honour of the pair, who had become local icons, with hopes to install a bench or statue in their memory. The incident occurred in Lansdowne, Bourton-on-the-Water,[2] on the evening of April 30.
The driver involved provided their details to a local resident and has since spoken to police about the tragic events, with investigations ongoing. A local couple initiated the Go Fund Me campaign to arrange for George and Mildred's cremation and return to their Cotswold home. They, along with the wider community, are brainstorming ideas on how best to use the GBP3,400 raised so far to pay tribute to the geese.
The Go Fund Me page reads: "Hi my name is Keith and with my fiance Jane we have lived in the village of Bourton-on-the-water for 30 years now. We are looking to do some fundraising in the memory of some very popular Geese we named George and Mildred who decided to make Lansdowne in Bourton-on-the-water their home and actually made the village a more interesting place but unfortunately they were tragically taken from us on Wednesday evening April 30, 2025. "The funds are to pay for their cremation and to put up some kind of memorial to be decided by the village to make sure they are always remembered."
The driver of the vehicle which killed George and Mildred has since been interviewed by police. The investigation shows no offences in relation to the Wildlife and Countryside Act A Gloucestershire police[3] spokeswoman said: "We're aware of posts circulating on social media relating to an incident in Bourton-on-the-Water earlier this week in which two geese who were on the road were struck by a vehicle.
We understand the upset this has caused in the local community and want to reassure people that we are aware of the incident and enquiries are taking place. "Police received a report on Wednesday evening (30 April) that the geese had been struck by the driver of a vehicle on Lansdowne at around 5.45pm. Officers from the Rural Crime team attended the scene due to concerns for the welfare of the birds, but both geese were deceased by the time officers arrived.
"The driver of the vehicle provided their details to a local resident and voluntarily came forward to inform officers what had happened. They were subsequently interviewed and the investigation shows no offences in relation to the Wildlife and Countryside Act. Enquiries are ongoing."
You can see and support the GoFundMe page here[4]
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References
- ^ Cotswolds (www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk)
- ^ Bourton-on-the-Water, (www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk)
- ^ Gloucestershire police (www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk)
- ^ GoFundMe page here (www.gofundme.com)
- ^ Gloucestershire Live (www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk)
- ^ click this link and select 'Join Community'. (chat.whatsapp.com)
- ^ Gloucestershire Live (www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk)
- ^ Privacy Notice. (www.reachplc.com)
- ^ Click here to join our WhatsApp community. (chat.whatsapp.com)