A tractor-trailer hauling chickens being raised for Mar-Jac Poultry overturned in Perry County, Mississippi, on May 2.
The accident occurred just after 9 a.m. on U.S. Highway 42. Perry County Emergency Management Agency Director Colby Prine told WDAM the semi was the only vehicle involved in the crash.
Chickens being hauled spilled when the semi overturned, killing many, but it Prine did not have estimates on how many birds died in the wreck.
The driver was taken to Forrest General Hospital to be treated for minor injuries.
The highway was closed until about 2:30 p.m. while the scene was cleaned up. Representatives from Mar-Jac were also on the scene to collect the chickens, Prine said.
Mar-Jac Poultry is the 15th largest poultry company in the United States, having processed 15.88 million pounds of ready-to-cook chicken on a weekly basis in 2018. Mar-Jac Poultry includes two broiler companies: Mar-Jac Poultry Inc., which has operations in Georgia; and Mar-Jac Poultry LLC, which has operations in Alabama and Mississippi, according to the WATTAgNet Top Poultry Companies Database.
