SPRINGFIELD, MISSOURI — The Missouri Department of Agriculture hosted free training Friday to prepare emergency responders and ranchers for one of the most challenging and underappreciated scenarios on the highway — a livestock trailer rollover with live animals inside.
A University of Wyoming study found that nearly 300 commercial livestock trailer crashes occur every year in the United States, with more than 80% resulting in a rollover. Friday’s training brought together animal welfare experts, emergency responders, and livestock handlers to address livestock behavior, responder safety, and scene management.
Bill Pittenger, Emergency Manager with the Missouri Department of Agriculture, said speed is a safety priority — for both humans and animals. “The human risk factor is the biggest reason we’d like to get these accident scenes cleared as quick as possible. Get the animals unloaded if we need to, in a humane manner, get them moved to a holding destination, and then get all the trailer, tractor-trailer, all that stuff cleared out so we can get traffic moving quickly.”
The University of Wyoming found that by combining law enforcement, fire departments, livestock handlers, and veterinarians, these crashes can be safely resolved in less than 30 minutes when responders are properly prepared.
📸 Image(s) used under fair use for news reporting.
