Monday 25 July 2011

mythical cryptid stops road tunnel

Swamp monster' threatens Auckland rail project
    From: AAP    July 25, 2011
A MYTHICAL swamp monster "hiding" under Auckland is threatening to derail a project to improve the New Zealand city's traffic gridlock.
The North Island city is trying to move ahead with a multi-billion railway tunnel project to improve the minimal train network and free up its car-filled streets.But Horotiu, a mythical monster, put the NZ$2.6 billion ($2.1 billion) project in doubt after an indigenous Maori board protested that it will destroy grounds once patrolled by the make-believe taniwha, pronounced tani-fa.Glenn Wilcox, a member of the Maori Statutory Board, which protects Maori interests, complained that the plan did not take into account the monster, which "was here first".The taniwha is a mythical protector with a powerful role in Maori folklore, but get it angry and you're in trouble, Mr Wilcox said.

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