Drivers in North Bend, Washington, were suddenly seeing stripes Sunday when a tiny herd of runaway zebras decided to take a saunter down a highway.
The four privately owned zebras hoofed it to freedom when the driver of the trailer transporting them to Montana pulled over to make an adjustment, appaerently to the door.
Then it was off to the races down I-90.
WSP said they got loose when the driver stopped to secure the trailer they were in, but King County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) said it is not clear how the animals escaped the truck.https://t.co/6KDBGP79jB
— KATU News (@KATUNews) April 29, 2024
"We got zebras in April in North Bend," neighbor Whitney Blomquist told local TV station KATU-2. "I've had plenty of bears in my yard but this was a new one, for sure."
Cars screeched to a halt, or swerved and pulled over so the animals weren't struck. By late Sunday state troopers, with the help of local good Samaritans, managed to "corral" all but one of the animals.
Three out of four wrangled ! pic.twitter.com/h13JVPhWAY
— Trooper Rick Johnson (@wspd2pio) April 28, 2024
"It was a first for me, 33-year Trooper Rick Johnson said to no one's surprise. He called it a "feel-good" story, and was confident about catching the last of the equines.
He credited the help of neighbors who saddled up to pitch. A rodeo cowboy also volunteered his services.
"They had a rodeo clown who was on his way, I guess to a rodeo, and they were using him to help corral," Blomquist said. "We got zebras on the loose, we've got a rodeo clown. I'm like, 'Cool, we've officially turned into a zoo here.'"
