Lagarfljót Worm Recorder To Be Paid Half A Million

The farmer who recorded the internationally-famous video of the “Lagarfljót Worm” water monster will be paid 500,000 ISK for his work.

RÚV reports that Hjörtur Kjerúlf, the farmer who recorded the original video of the creature, will be awarded a one-time payment of 500,000 ISK by the Fljótsdal Shire. This payment is to be made “when the occasion arises”.

As reported in February 2012, Hjörtur took a video of what appears to be a long object moving in a snake-like motion across the current of the river feeding into the lake and uploaded it to YouTube. There was speculation that this was the famed Worm of Lagarfljót.

The video went viral, attracting attention as far afield as Japan. Although it was later debunked as fishing netting tangled in ice, in May 2012 the NBC show “Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files” went in search of the Worm, as did ABC News the following June. Shortly thereafter, the 13-person truth committee was established to verify or dismiss, once and for all, the existence of the Worm.

While the more mundane explanation – that this was a length of fishing net caught in the icy current – is generally accepted, this has not stopped the mythology. Last year, the committee concluded that the worm is real, as “there was no reason to doubt that there was some kind of creature or being in the water”.

Most recently, Japanese state broadcasting visited the scene to do an exposé on the creature.

Below you can view two videos taken of the alleged monster and judge for yourself:
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OmyyHyya64&w=560&h=315] [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_SUi1q00f8&w=560&h=315]