Animal rights activists push for rollover memorial

Toowoomba animals rights activists have said they want to set up a make-shift memorial for the cattle killed in yesterday’s truck rollover in Rangeville.

Emergency services at the scene of a cattle truck rollover near the corner of James and Cohoe Sts, Monday, August 20, 2018. Picture: Kevin Farmer

TOOWOOMBA animals rights activists have said they want to set up a make-shift memorial for the cattle killed in yesterday's truck rollover in Rangeville.

Vegans in Toowoomba co-founder Mo Orr said the group had called for people to place flowers on the corner of Cohoe and James Streets where a truck rolled over on Monday afternoon.

"It's important (to set up the memorial) as nobody has seen these animals, they're invisible," Ms Orr said.

"The first people see of them are the neat little packages on supermarket shelves.

"We want to say to (the cows) that we see them and we're sorry and we're trying."

She said members of the group had estimated 33 cattle, out of the 66 head on board, had died in the crash, or were shot dead after the crash because of injuries.

Ms Orr said she travelled to the crash scene as soon as she heard about it.

"It was horrific," she said.

"There were cattle trapped, injured, dying and dead.

"One lonely steer was just standing all on his own."

She said she attended the crash to "witness" what was happening to the cattle and to take photos for social media.

"The authorities would not let me stay on my side of the perimeter and said I had no right to film," she said.

"They moved me back to where media was, it was very disturbing and distressing."

Rangeville Rollover

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She said she was informed the animals who survived the crash would be loaded onto another truck.

"They would then be taken away for slaughter," she said.

"Those that were euthanised had the better deal. The others, in the state they were in, would have been put on another truck, taken to a holding pen and slaughtered today."

Ms Orr said she spoke with a number of bystanders on the street about animal rights issues.

"I asked them to reconsider their food choices as this shouldn't happen."

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Tobi Loftus

Originally published as Animal rights activists push for rollover memorial