20 Cows Escape Slaughterhouse, Roam Neighborhood Before One Shot by Deputy

A cow was fatally shot by a deputy as officers attempted to round up a herd of cattle that are believed to have escaped from a meatpacking plant in California.

Officers from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Office responded on Tuesday evening at around 7:30 p.m., when a herd of at least 20 cows were spotted roaming free in neighborhoods after they escaped from a plant located in Pico Rivera, Los Angeles County, according to KTLA.

The department tweeted about the herd, warning residents that the cows were spotted "loose" on Beverly Road and Durfee Avenue and urged local people to stay away from the area.

At least two cattle trailers were seen in the area, as the officers attempted to round up the cows, eventually managing to corral the herd to a cul-de-sac where deputies then surrounded them.

As the officers attempted to corral the cattle, the department tweeted: "STEER CLEAR for a few more minutes please. We are in the process of mooo-ving the cows!"

One resident was injured by the herd and was taken to a local trauma center in an unknown condition, while one cow was fatally shot by a deputy, the department told CBS Los Angeles on Tuesday evening.

The department did not provide any further details about how the resident was injured or why the cow was shot during the incident. One cow was seen sitting alone in the middle of the road near a pool of blood, according to KTLA.

Emergency services responded to the scene to tend to the shot cow, while an empty baby stroller was situated nearby with discarded items surrounding it on the floor.

The deputies eventually tried to load the herd onto trailers at around 9:45 p.m., but while officers attempted to get the cattle to safety, three of them managed to get loose and were chased by deputies around the surrounding areas.

The deputies eventually herded all the cattle, but one resident told KTLA that the deputies were following the cows around in their squad cars "like they're a bunch of presidents or something."

In May 2020, a herd of around five to 10 cows escaped from a farm in Cicero, New York, and explored the surrounding suburbs until the owner rounded them up.

Local police kept an eye on the animals while they waited for the farmer to round them up, and filmed them exploring the local areas.

"Cicero PD was on scene today around mooooooooon time in the Lyons Landing area to assist in apprehending the loose cows," Cicero Police said in a post on Facebook accompanying video footage of the cows exploring the neighborhood that was uploaded with a soundtrack of "Bad Boys."

Newsweek has contacted the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Office for comment.