Smithfield Foods Transport Truck Carrying Between 180 and 200 Pigs Crashed In Suffolk, Virginia: See the Hell Endured By the Pigs

Just horrible. Again, no concern at all for the welfare of the pigs. Simply treat them like brainless meat. The film footage is below.

Article and footage:

Almost 200 Pigs Trapped, Many Injured Following
Smithfield Foods Accident

To see the video of the truck crash copy and paste
link below:

http://www.goveg.com/f-smithfields.asp

On May 12, 2006, a Smithfield Foods transport truck
carrying between 180 and 200 pigs crashed in Suffolk,
Virginia. This was at least the sixth such crash in
southeastern Virginia in just over two years. The
accident threw the animals to one side of the
double-decker truck, where they lay trapped on top of
each other in the sun for more than three and a half
hours-some struggling to breathe and others with their
legs sticking out through the slats of the truck's
aluminum side. The truck had reportedly broken down en
route to a slaughterhouse, and because it arrived
after the kill floor had closed for the day, the
driver was told to turn around. The pigs-animals who
are extremely sensitive to heat-spent several hours on
the crowded truck with no water.

The pigs' piercing screams could be heard above the
rush of traffic on the busy street and numerous idling
police vehicles and fire trucks. Local firefighters
attempted to relieve the extreme heat in the truck by
spraying the pigs down a few times, but the screams
and bellowing intensified as hours passed.

After company officials attempted to unscrew the side
of the truck with a drill, the loud noise terrifying
the pigs inside, firefighters used the "Jaws of Life"
(massive metal cutters that can cut through steel
bars) to pry open the top of the truck. The pigs were
pulled, pushed, kicked, and prodded down a slippery
ramp and into a holding pen. They were terrified and
didn't know where to go; many were pulled and dragged
by their ears in order to get them to move.

One pig, unable to move, sat on the ramp for more than
11 minutes and was trampled by her peers as they
struggled to get off the truck in full view of
workers. Workers attempted to push her down the ramp,
lift her up by her back legs, and kick her to make her
move, but she was unable to stand. After the other
pigs on the top level of the truck were unloaded, a
worker kicked her again and pushed her down the ramp.

PETA staff members-alerted about the crash by
concerned passersby-pleaded with officials for hours,
to no avail, in an attempt to ensure that injured
animals were examined and put out of their misery.

After the truck was righted-with many of the panicked
and injured pigs still in it-the pigs on the truck's
bottom level were taken to a nearby holding facility.
None were seen being examined by any company officials
or a veterinarian, and their screams continued as the
truck carted them away. Five hours after the crash,
those left in the makeshift pen were reloaded onto
another truck. Workers slapped and kicked many of the
pigs to get them back on the truck; one animal's head
was slammed against the bottom of the metal ramp as a
worker tried to force her up. Another pig repeatedly
fell on the loading ramp; she was forced onto the
truck, where she fell again.

PETA continues to engage in dialogue with prosecutors
in a neighboring county about a possible criminal case
stemming from an October 2005 Smithfield accident. We
have been and will continue to work with area law
enforcement agencies to minimize animal suffering at
these crashes.

The only true way to ensure that you are not
supporting such cruelty is to adopt a vegetarian diet.
Request a free vegetarian starter kit filled with
recipes and information to help you make the
transition to a cruelty-free diet today!