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For immediate release:
June 21, 2021
Contact:
Nicole Meyer 202-483-7382
Smithfield, Virginia. “Because there have been more truck accidents on the SR 10 section of trucks carrying animals raised for their meat than on any other road of the same length. in the countryPETA sent an urgent letter to Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) Commissioner Stephen Brich this morning asking him to designate this section of road as a highway safety corridor. PETA has documented at least nine rollovers in an alleged corridor of Smithfield Foods trucks carrying live pigs, the last of which only happened last month.
“We urge VDOT to create a safety corridor because all these accidents leave pigs maimed and bloody, and those who do not die on impact suffer for hours screaming from overturned trailers,” says PETA Senior Vice President Daphne Nachminovic. “PETA urges officials to make this section of the road safer for everything and anyone who is worried about animals suffering in trucks and on the side of the road – or in slaughterhouses – go vegan. “
PETA, whose motto is in part that “animals are not ours to eat,” is opposed to specisism, a worldview focused on human excellence. For more information please visit PETA.org or subscribe to the group on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram…
This is followed by PETA’s letter to Brich.
June 21, 2021
Steven S. Brich, ChP
Commissioner
Virginia Department of Transportation
Dear Commissioner Brich,
We hope this letter will correct you. I am writing on behalf of PETA to ask your agency to consider designating State Route (SR) 10 between US Route 58 in Suffolk and SR 666 in Isle of Wight, a highway safety corridor under Virginia Code § 33.2-253 … …
This part of the SR 10 has been the site of more livestock tractor trailer accidents than any other road of similar length. in the country– most recently, May 24, 2021. PETA has documented at least nine such overturns of trailers in the proposed corridor. A Smithfield Foods spokesman admitted that live pig truck accidents in the area are “constantly occurring,” and a former Smithfield volunteer fire chief said he has responded to more than 100 such accidents (attached).
These accidents are serious. William Lewis, 55, was killed in April 1998 when he escaped the SR 10 and rolled over in a ditch while carrying pigs (attached). At least half of the other accidents of this nature that PETA has documented on the SR 10 have resulted in truck driver injuries, if not others. In addition, sunken ships place significant demands on rapid response services. The discarded animals must be corralled. Others end up being shot on the spot, and the dead must be dumped into trucks. Trailers must be lifted to a vertical position, and problems with utilities and other damaged property must be eliminated. Traffic is often distracted for many hours.
Each accident causes immense suffering for many animals. Since the November 2020 crash, at least 160 pigs have been trapped in an overturned trailer for at least four hours before being removed, police said. After a truck crash in August 2019 at SR 10 / US 58 junction, screaming pigs lay for hours on top of each other in a trailer, but workers went on strike and forced them to sit on another trailer – as also happened after the September 2008 incident. crash. As a result of incidents in November 2013 and October 2011, 127 animals died. After the drivers crashed in October 2005 and March 2004, the pigs were left for several hours with serious injuries and were even shot repeatedly in the head.
Moreover, these accidents have long been of public interest. Virginia Pilot the editors announced: “[J]just because animals are meant for dinner is not a reason to allow unnecessary suffering on the side of our roads ”(attached). After the last accident in May, those who own and operate factories in the proposed corridor expressed disappointment, and one manager told WVEC: “It would be nice if [the crashes] stop happening. ” PETA and our more than 130,000 members and supporters in the Commonwealth are also taking a keen interest in this topic.
We respectfully ask the agency to designate this part of SR 10 as a highway safety corridor to encourage everyone to take extra care when driving on it. Installing speeding and traffic violations warning signs, along with an increased police presence, will make this stretch of Virginia’s road safer for everyone.
Thanks for your time and attention. Please let me know how we can help you. Waiting for the agency’s response
Sincerely,
Daniel Paden
Vice President of Evidence Analysis
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