Two horses on a California Interstate caused CHP to briefly shutdown busy freeway to get the pair of palominos under control.
*Update: It should be noted that these weren’t wild horses but domesticated horses that got loose!
In a not so bizarre mix of man meeting nature on a Monday morning, two domesticated horses that got loose caused quite a stir on a busy California interstate. According to the SF Gate on their report on the occurrence earlier today (Mar. 27, 2017) CHP and local authorities started receiving calls at the height of morning rush hour that their were two horses galloping next to the center divide. And even though it’s technically illegal to hold a phone while driving, more than one motorist managed to catch a couple of videos and photos of the incident. Check out some of the more popular social media posts that have been circulating since this morning below!
Horses causing delays on NB I-680 in #WalnutCreek… https://t.co/kSvxo5GLx6 pic.twitter.com/GqHskoy5Dc
— Emily Kirschenheuter (@ekirschenheuter) March 27, 2017
All lanes of NB 680 in #walnutcreek briefly shut down after these horses interrupted the morning commute ?? pic.twitter.com/xXI9PJ8gLM
— KTVU (@KTVU) March 27, 2017
Minor Stampede Halts 680 Traffic, Horses Corralled By CHP https://t.co/agoulEvMH7 pic.twitter.com/8iDsyNkvFX
— SFist (@SFist) March 27, 2017
According to eye witnesses, the two horses originated in the nearby town of Alamo in Contra Costa County and meandered around city streets for about 20 minutes before merging onto the freeway on ramp near Walnut Creek. Thankfully traffic slowed to a standstill, as motorists are bound to do when they see an oddity on the freeway, as the horses flew by them in the opposite direction.
For 15 minutes, all northbound lanes were closed off as the proper authorities did their best to “round up” the miscreant horses.
You’ll be happy to learn that no horses were injured or harmed in the process after Contra Costa County Animal Services performed a low-speed chase ninety minutes after the first reports rolled in.
At least one student e-mailed their teacher to let them know they’d be late for classes due to the horses.
*horses run on freeway to shut it down*
Me: emails teacher to say why I can't come
Teacher pic.twitter.com/dOblQ4VCpa— ej (@xrnvst) March 27, 2017
The CHP had a sense of humor about the whole incident.
CHP helps wrangle up horses on 680 …and violating the carpool lane! https://t.co/BpXik7PO3m pic.twitter.com/N6y5AulbNG
— CHP Contra Costa (@CHP_ContraCosta) March 27, 2017
And even Bay Area legend reporter Stanley Roberts himself wondered if this was a case of #HorsesBehavingBadly.
#HorsesBehavingBadly? Someone's going to say this I'm just skipping the middleman 😂😂https://t.co/JFjwjDTekl
— Stanley Roberts 🎬░N░E░W░S░ ░I░N░ ░B░I░0░ (@StanleyRoberts) March 27, 2017
#HorsesBehavingBadly? Someone’s going to say this I’m just skipping the middleman ??https://t.co/JFjwjDTekl
— Stanley Roberts (@SRobertsKRON4) March 27, 2017
If you’ve lived in California long enough you’ll know that 80 percent of the state is definitely not beaches. With a large pastoral setting found across the length of the state, wild and domesticated horses are an everyday sight to a good number of Californians.
Even our plucky editor has run into horse and rider numerous times on his daily runs on city streets during cross country and track practice during his tenure with the Moreau Catholic Mariners next to the Hayward Hills. So although this incident made for an exciting morning for some Bay Area commuters, it isn’t all to uncommon for this to happen in the first place.
