Camera ban hinders hunt for Swedish sea monster

Sweden's legendary Great Lake Sea Monster (Storsjöodjuret) remains the focus of photographers hunting for its image despite a Jämtland county council order banning cameras on the shores of Storsjön in Östersund in northern Sweden.

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Svenstavik local business association has continued its surveillance of the lake in the hope of the spotting the famed 'monster' without permission from the Jämtland County Administrative Board (Länsstyrelsen).

Pictures from cameras set up on the lake's shores have been published on the association's homepage and have raised the interest of the council who have issued fines.

"When we found out about the camera surveillance undertaken without a permit we immediately conducted a review. The association has since been encouraged to apply for a permit," said Åsa Johansson at Jämtland County Administrative Board.

After completing a review of the case the board has agreed to permit four cameras to watch for the legendary beast but they are to be located under the water surface of the lake.

Any camera surveillance above the water's surface has been ruled in breach of regulations.

The Local reported in August that a film crew had made claims to have captured an image of the monster.

Their film clip broadcast on Sveriges Television showed a blurry, long and narrow silhouette moving in the lake's nether regions.

The hunt for the monster dates back to 1635 when the first witnesses testimony emerged. In 1894 a Swedish sea captain named Dedering created a listed company with the express purpose of tracking the animal.

In 1986, Jämtland’s county administrative board banned anyone from “killing, injuring, or trapping a live animal such as the Great Lake Sea Monster” or from “removing or injuring the Great Lake Sea Monster’s eggs, roe, or dwelling”.

Most of the reported sightings of the monster have occurred in the southern areas of the lake

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