Horse running on busy freeway killed, creating gridlock near City of Industry

A semi truck and a sedan struck and killed a horse that had been seen running along a busy freeway Tuesday evening in City of Industry, blocking traffic for several hours.

California Highway Patrol officers responded to a call at 7:49 p.m. of a “horse running in lanes and slow traffic� on the 605 Freeway, CHP Officer Ramon Kendricks said.

A minute later, another call reported a trailer had stopped next to a “dead horse blocking one or two lanes,� he said.

At 7:55 p.m., CHP officers arrived on the scene to find that the horse had been hit by “a sedan and a semi truck,� according to Hendricks.

It was unclear how the horse got on the freeway, perhaps falling from a trailer, he said, and officials continue to investigate the incident.

The “horse was blocking the HOV and one lane,� and after CHP arrived “all lanes were stopped,� he said.

Caltrans officials said initially that they did not have the ability to pick up the horse and requested help from animal control. Ultimately, though, “Caltrans responded with a loader and a dump truck,� Hendricks said.

As late as 10 p.m., the dead horse was left uncovered on the carpool lane on the 605. It lay on its side, a pool of blood around its head. Two California Highway patrolmen stood about 20 feet away, talking to each other as traffic crawled along.

Eventually, Caltrans employees arrived “with a bulldozer to lift the horse up onto the truck� and clear it from the scene, according to OnScene.

Times staff writer Gustavo Arellano contributed to this report.