Watch: Turtle crossing Florida highway causes pileup
The video was shared by the Walton County Sheriff’s Office, which stated that the incident happened on U.S. Highway 331S and was recorded by a camera inside a semi-truck involved in the crash.
Turtle crossing on Florida highway leads to crash
A motorist’s decision to stop on a highway in the Florida Panhandle to allow a turtle to cross the road led to a chain-reaction crash involving multiple vehicles, including a semi-truck, on May 16, Walton County officials said. (Credit: Walton County Sheriff's Office)
WALTON COUNTY, Fla. – Footage captured the moment a turtle crossing a highway led to a pileup in the Florida Panhandle on Tuesday morning.
The video was shared by the Walton County Sheriff’s Office, which stated that the incident happened on U.S. Highway 331S and was recorded by a camera inside a semi-truck involved in the crash.
The video begins by showing the semi traveling down the highway in the right lane with other vehicles on the road that appeared to be moving at a similar speed. Then, the vehicles suddenly slowed down. A car in the left lane veered into the right lane and the semi swerved to miss it.
A car bumps up against the semi.
(Walton County Sheriff's Office / Facebook / FOX Weather)
As the driver of the semi tried to stop, the tractor-trailer continued traveling through the mass of cars stopped on the highway.
A closer look at the footage revealed that the driver of a black pickup was standing on the road next to their parked vehicle, waiting for a turtle to cross the road.
The semi, however, was unable to stop and swiped the black truck and sent debris into the air.
The semi crashes into the truck, as the turtle remains in the middle of the road.
(Walton County Sheriff's Office / Facebook / FOX Weather)
According to the Walton County Sheriff’s Office, the turtle was not harmed in the crash.
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"The turtle survived and is now living happily ever after in a pond where he will (hopefully) spend the rest of his days avoiding pavement of any kind," they said in a Facebook post.
Within the Facebook post, the sheriff’s office and Florida Highway Patrol cautioned motorists about the dangers that may come with avoiding or assisting an animal in the middle of the road.