Cattle Escape From Tipped Truck On I-90

The Minnesota State Patrol reports a semi truck went into the ditch from the eastbound lane of Interstate 90 around 4:30 a.m. Wednesday. The driver of the truck wasn't critically injured and told troopers he was forced off of the road by another car.

"You don't know exactly what the other driver was thinking or if he was coherent and they moved over on him too quick," Corporal Matt Sorenson said.

The truck was hauling about 80 head of cattle; 30 of them escaped. 

"Some got out of the Interstate and out into fields. Some stayed in the Interstate right-of-way. A second crash did occur with a van. Nobody got hurt in that crash either," Sorenson said.

Sorenson credits seat belts for ensuring no people were severely hurt.

Other trailers were brought in to take the surviving cattle out of the area.

Cleaning up the scene lasted well into the morning. That kept traffic slow for several hours.

"It is fortunate that most drivers are pretty cautious around our crash scenes. Getting them to slow down, move over, really helps out at crash scenes," Sorenson said. "We really appreciate that when people pay a little attention when coming through those crash scenes."

Several agencies were on the scene. 

The Minnesota Department of Transportation was also in the area using vehicles with flashing lights to warn drivers about the cattle. Crews also called in cattle ropers to help wrangle up some that escaped into fields.