Beloved monster-sized Alberta dinosaur set for tests ahead of possible extinction

The Tyrannosaurus Rex, a beloved icon that dominates the skyline of Drumheller in the heart of Canada’s Badlands, is facing extinction and is set to undergo tests this fall to determine whether the beloved attraction can be saved.

Drumheller Mayor Heather Colberg has announced that a technical review will be conducted to determine how much work and money it will take to preserve the Tyra in its current location. The 25-metre statue currently dominates the skyline of the city, which sits northeast of Calgary.

“We have agreed to have an engineering study done, so that will likely be done in the fall,” Colberg said. “When that’s done, we’ll have a good idea of ​​how long Tyra will last and all the features that are relevant to her, and hopefully we’ll be able to make a decision before I’m out of office.”

“If we were suddenly told that she’s going to fall apart, that would be a whole different discussion,” he added. "But if they say he'll live another 30 years and just need a shell, that's a different story."

Tyra is four times the size of a real Tyrannosaurus rex and attracts 150,000 visitors a year. The dinosaur has been the backdrop for thousands of tourist photos for the past 25 years.

He's located right across from the intersection of Gorgosaurus Avenue and Tyrannosaurus Drive, near the visitor information center. There's also an ice cream stand nearby that sells dinosaur fossils, T-shirts and toys. Tourists can climb 106 steps inside Tyra's body and stand in his mouth and look down.

While the city of Drumheller owns the land on which Tyra sits, the Drumheller and District Chamber of Commerce owns the attraction. The chamber has said the dinosaur is scheduled to be removed in 2029, when its lease expires.

The announcement has been met with public backlash, with 25,000 people signing a petition calling for the Tyra to be saved. The town of Drumheller has also called for meetings with the Drumheller Chamber of Commerce and the Drumheller Tourism Authority.

In April, the town announced that the three groups were exploring options, and an engineering study has since begun.

Kohlberg expressed hope that the historic landmark would not suffer the same fate as the dinosaurs.

“I would be really surprised if the Tyra is not saved,” he said. “There has to be a solution. I will not give up.”

The town of Drumheller, with a population of 8,400, bills itself as the dinosaur capital. Home to the Royal Tyrrell Museum, the town has statues of dinosaurs that look like they’ve stepped out of a Flintstones cartoon and greet people on the streets.

Kohlberg said he was initially surprised by the amount of national attention the possibility of Tyrannosaurus rex extinction in Canada has garnered, but after a while, the attention stopped coming to him.

“People love dinosaurs and they come here to see dinosaurs,” he added. “When you advertise that you’re the dinosaur capital and you have the biggest dinosaur in the world, people expect to see it.”

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