Cow shot dead after fleeing meat plant
A wild cow was shot dead by police today after it escaped from a meat plant.
A marksman was called in amid fears lives were at risk in Coleraine, Co Derry.
At one stage trains were halted as officers tried to stop the animal heading for the town centre.
Police called in a vet during frantic attempts to trap the animal, but he was unable to put it down.
Inspector Milne Rowntree said: “We considered there was a grave danger to members of the public had the cow escaped into the nearby town centre, which was very busy at the time.
“Regretfully, as a matter of last resort, it was decided to shoot the animal.”
The cow had earlier broken free from a plant on Lower Newmills Road and went into a river.
Staff cornered it behind a leisure centre, but decided it was too wild and called for police help.
Mr Rowntree said the break-out could have left someone seriously harmed if meat company workers and the public had not helped in the operation.
He added: “Only with their assistance were we able to prevent injury to members of the public.”
