Driver Cited In Crash That Killed 10 Cows On I-75

KENNESAW, GA — A 26-year-old driver of a tractor trailer has been cited for his part in the crash that killed several cows early Thursday along Interstate 75 in Cobb County.

Cobb police officers responded to the collision around 4:44 a.m. May 17 on the southbound side of the interstate just north of Wade Green Road. According to Cobb police, Nathaniel Ledford of Knoxville, Tennessee, was behind the wheel of a 2001 Peterbilt when he "failed to maintain lane" and veered off to the right side of the roadway.

Ledford tried to get back into the lanes when the tractor trailer hit an attenuation barrier, which caused the vehicle and its load of cattle to overturn across all lanes of the interstate, said Cobb police spokesperson Sgt. Wayne Delk.

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Seven cows were initially killed in the crash and the others were rounded up by Cobb County Animal Control officers. However, the Georgia Department of Agriculture, which also helped in the cleanup and removal of the dead and living cattle, later confirmed to Patch that three more cows succumbed to their injuries.

I-75 was closed for a few hours to allow for the scene to be cleared. The accident caused a major snag in the Thursday morning rush hour period, and Georgia state troopers and Georgia Department of Transportation HERO units diverted traffic off the interstate at the Highway 92 interchange.

The remaining cattle were transported to a location in Calhoun. Sgt. Delk said Ledford was cited for failure to maintain lane.

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