Two thousand chickens cross final road
About 2,000 chickens were killed or had to be euthanized Thursday afternoon after a tractor-trailer overturned, snarling traffic onto the northbound Niagara Thruway.
The Canada-bound truck, which was carrying about 9,700 crated chickens, tipped over about 2:30 p. m. on a curve from the Mainline Thruway to the Niagara section. The driver, Stanley P. Chesney, 47, made a sudden lane change after exiting the eastbound Thruway and lost control, state police said.
Chesney, who drives for Ontario Inc. of Walkerton, Ont., suffered bruises to his left arm and leg but refused medical treatment. He was charged with making an unsafe lane change.
About a quarter of the chickens being hauled died at the scene, police estimated. Injured but salvageable birds were taken to SPCA headquarters for treatment.
In all, 2,320 chickens — in 144 crates — were taken to the SPCA, with 147 dead after arriving there and 60 euthanized. The remaining 7,380 remained at the accident scene to be surveyed.
Uninjured chickens were later released back to the trucking company, according to State Police Sgt. Elton Mitchell. Trucking company officials returned to the scene of the crash and to the SPCA to retrieve the surviving chickens; employees and volunteers loaded the birds onto a truck.
Mitchell said authorities used “all their best efforts to contain the chickens” after arriving on scene. It is possible some of the birds may have gotten away.
“If the public does see a stray white chicken around, it’s probably from the accident,” Mitchell said. “They can contact the SPCA on Ensminger Road.”
Meanwhile, Gina Browning, the public relations director of the SPCA in the Town of Tonawanda, described a grim scene of blood and broken eggs inside the SPCA facility.
“In 18 years [working at the SPCA], I can tell you I’ve never seen anything of this magnitude,” Browning said.
The facility closed 2 1/2 hours early to make room for the birds. SPCA officials used the auditorium and the garage to fit all the crates.
“It’s mortifying,” employee Julie Ruppel said. “It’s unimaginable what we’re seeing.”
Troopers said Chesney made the sudden lane change after being distracted while looking into his rearview mirrors. He lost control and the vehicle, which tipped over.
Leanne Kozaczka, an employee for Montgomery’s Service, which cleaned up the scene, said she usually works in the company’s office but came to the scene at the request of her parents, the company owners, who needed all the help they could get.
She and more than 20 other workers began sorting through the crates to see which birds died and which survived.
Max Czora, an insurance adjuster from Custard Insurance, came to take photos and survey the damage. He said he couldn’t speculate on what the damage was.
“We’ve had no loss like this in 20 years,” said Czora, adding that the company had good drivers and it was a “shame this happened.”
nmorera@buffnews.com and tjpignataro@buffnews.com
