On the Florida Turnpike, dozens of free cows block traffic for several hours

• Efforts to corral roughly 70 cows shut down a portion of Florida’s Turnpike.
• A fire truck brought all lanes to a standstill for over three hours near St. Cloud.
• Law enforcement diverted southbound traffic to mile marker 244 until cows were caught.

On Monday afternoon, a herd of stray cows forced the closure of a section of the Florida Turnpike in the state’s centre; causing severe traffic jams in Osceola County, south of Orlando.

Near St. Cloud, which is about 27 miles southeast of Orlando, all lanes came to a complete stop; for more than three hours while efforts were made to contain the nearly 70 cows that were released following a truck fire.

Approximately south of the Canoe Creek Service Plaza; Florida Highway Patrol officers reported a fire at 11:38 a.m. ET.

From then until Yeehaw Junction at State Road 60, or about from milepost 244 to 192; all north and southbound lanes were shut down.

According to a statement from FHP Lt. Tara Crescenzi; the driver’s cabin of a semi-truck from Samson, Alabama caught fire.

She said that he opened the livestock trailer after pulling the semi off the northbound highway lanes; and saving the animals from the smoke and fire.

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Traffic camera footage from the Florida Department of Transportation shows that lanes were shut down; while Osceola County law enforcement and state troopers rounded up the remaining cattle until roads were restored at 2:45 p.m. WT. The scenario was streamed live by FOX 35 in Orlando.

Until the rest of the cows were apprehended, Crescenzi said, law enforcement diverted; southbound traffic at mile marker 244, which is U.S. 192/U.S. 441 Kissimmee-St. Cloud.

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