Truck wreck leaves live chickens on I-285

By Mike Morris and John Spink

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The feathers were flying on I-285 early Thursday when a truck collided with a poultry truck, knocking live chickens onto the interstate.

Enlarge photo

John Spink, jspink@ajc.com Chicken truck driver Dennis McCoy retrieves his birds after an early-morning wreck on I-285.

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The wreck happened on I-285 between I-20 and Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway around 4:30 a.m., just after a heavy rainstorm.

Keith Turner was driving one of the trucks, pulling tandem trailers loaded with household products.

“When it started raining, the water set up on the road and [his truck]  just hydroplaned and I lost it,” Turner told the AJC.

Turner’s rear trailer overturned, hitting the chicken truck and knocking about 100 of the 4,000 chickens off the truck and onto I-285.

All northbound lanes of the interstate were shut down for about 45 minutes while authorities and the chicken truck driver, Dennis McCoy, rounded up the loose chickens, which were on their way to a processing plant in Marietta.

Atlanta fire Battalion Chief Bryant Tate said his crews initially thought they would be dealing with a hazmat incident, but weed killer being hauled by the first truck turned out not to pose a danger.

The only human injury reported was a sprained ankle suffered by Turner.

There was no immediate word on whether any of the chickens crossed the road.