In a move that’s definitely not a scene from a low-budget horror movie, the City of Lubbock sent crews out to the North Water Treatment Plant this week to play a high-stakes game of “Scoop the Carcass”. City personnel and Canadian River Water Municipal Authority workers were spotted using heavy construction equipment to scrape up a “large number” of dead geese and bury them nearby. You know, right next to the place where your drinking water hangs out.
City officials were quick to reassure everyone that the water is totally fine. According to Lacey Rose with the City of Lubbock, the treatment and testing measures are “surpassing” EPA and TCEQ standards. They’ve decided to bury the birds on-site rather than trucking them to a landfill, presumably because the optics of a “Honk If You’re Biohazardous” garbage truck rolling down Avenue Q were a bit much, even for this administration.
Meanwhile, just down the road, Ransom Canyon is showing us what it looks like when a town actually acknowledges a problem before it starts rotting in the backyard. While Lubbock spent the better part of December and January acting like the birds were just “sleepy,” Ransom Canyon has been firing off email and social media alerts since December 16th. They’ve already collected nearly 400 birds over the last 90 days, and thanks to last week’s winter storm, they’re now dealing with “goose-sicles” thawing out of the lake and onto residential lawns.
The mass die-off across the area is being blamed on Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, which has been turning local geese into twitching, neurological messes for months. While Lubbock is finally admitting the situation is “circulating,” Ransom Canyon is actively coordinating with the City of Lubbock Public Health Department to clear the latest batch of feathered casualties. Both cities have reiterated their favorite piece of advice for the good people of the South Plains: stop touching the dead things with your bare hands.
If you happen to see a goose in Lubbock or the Canyon that looks like it just spent four hours at a Broadway bar, officials suggest you call Animal Services. Whatever you do, don’t try to be a hero—unless your idea of heroism is being the “Patient Zero” that finally puts Lubbock on the map for something other than dirt and Buddy Holly.
https://www.kcbd.com/2026/02/03/ransom-canyon-issues-public-safety-notice-regarding-bird-flu/
Catch Up on the “Grounded” Goose Chronicles:
- January 26, 2026: Geese Are Falling From the Sky, but Don’t Worry—The City Posted on Facebook Two Weeks Ago
- January 17, 2026: Lubbock Discovers New Hobby: Touching Diseased Geese Anyway
- January 8, 2026: Level Up Like King, Catch the Bird Flu Like a Goose: Lubbock’s Public Health Priorities at Work
- December 16, 2025: Brownfield Explains Bird Flu Like Grownups, While Lubbock Still Pretends Geese Are a Vibe
- December 16, 2025: Birds Are Literally Dying in Lubbock Parks, but Don’t Worry—The City’s Busy Posting About Whooping Cough
- December 6, 2025: City to Lubbock: Maybe Don’t Pick Up the Diseased Birds, Y’all
- December 2, 2025: Bird Flu Hits Lubbock: Even the Geese Are Tired of This Place