401 accident

Ontario highway crash spills live chickens all over the 401

A Wednesday morning accident on Ontario's Highway 401 has left two human drivers — and a whole lot of chicken passengers — quite shaken up.

The collision took place near James Snow Parkway in Milton, and involved a sedan and a transport truck that was carrying the live birds westbound on the rush-hour packed artery.

The Mississauga arm of the Ontario Provincial Police responded to the incident around 7:30 a.m., taking to social media to advise the public that the flock of feathered commuters was left scrambling around the roadway in the wake of the incident.

"Truck was carrying chickens — live chickens on the highway," the force wrote rather hilariously on X, telling drivers to take alternative routes due to extremely heavy traffic in the area, paired with lane closures that were expected to last "for several hours."

As of the time of publication, three lanes of Highway 401 westbound remain closed around the mentioned exit — the HOV, left and middle lanes — while the HOV and left lane are also shuttered going eastbound.

"Closure expected until approx. noon for the clean up and truck removal," officers wrote around 9:15 a.m.

They added around 9:30 a.m. that animal welfare agents were on the scene to address the chicken issue — quite ironic given that the creatures were likely destined for slaughter after a life of factory-farmed misery.

The driver of the 18-wheeler, which can be seen in police photos, tipped almost completely over onto the median and was taken to a local hospital with minor injuries.

Somehow, this isn't the only time in recent memory that authorities have had to corral live animals off a Southern Ontario freeway — last fall, a staggering 1,500 gobbling turkeys were inadvertently set free when the truck carrying them (inevitably to Thanksgiving dinner plates) rolled in a crash, also on the 401.

There have also been similar incidents involving live bees and live lobsters.

Lead photo by

Ontario Provincial Police/X


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