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According to Montana Highway Patrol Trooper Jeremy Lee, 4 cows are dead and 5 are injured after a semi truck carrying 41 head of cattle flipped just outside of Helena, near the Lincoln Road exit.

Lee says a truck towing a horse trailer was turning around in the emergency vehicle median when the driver blocked traffic. The driver of the semi, which was southbound on Interstate 15, then swerved to miss the trailer and flipped into the barrow pit.

Click on the images to the left to watch the raw video from the scene and the broadcast video.

West Valley Fire, Montana Highway Patrol, Lewis & Clark County Sheriff's office, and J & D Towing and Recovery all responded to the crash to find all of the cows trapped inside the semi.

Crews quickly set up a perimeter with temporary fencing so when the cattle escaped they wouldn't run across the highway. They brought in three men on horseback and two on ATVs in order to herd the loose cattle.

Firefighters used the "jaws of life" to cut off the roof of the semi and free several of the cows. The first group of cows to be freed appeared to be uninjured.

Crews then cut the back of the semi off to free the rest of the trapped cattle.

MT Department of Livestock director Christian Mackay was on scene with the state veterinarian; he said his agency was there to help with containing the cattle once they got loose. He says the dead cows will be taken to the landfill, and the injured ones will be treated by the state vet.

Mackay says typically when livestock is lost, either the trucking company's insurance or the rancher's insurance will cover the loss.

He says the last accident like this was about two years ago when a cattle truck flipped near Walmart in Helena.

Jim Lynch, the director of the MT Department of Transportation, was also on scene helping regulate traffic. Traffic didn't stop, but moved slowly past the accident.

A rancher from the Choteau area owns the cattle, and was having them shipped from Choteau to be slaughtered.

(Update, 1:30 pm) A semi truck hauling cows has overturned on southbound I-15 at mile marker 200 in Helena near the Lincoln Road exit.

Marnee Banks is reporting that the truck was carrying approximately 40 cows at the time of the accident. Officials are now stating that "a few" of them have died.

Some of the cows managed to escape and have begun wandering through nearby fields; officials have brought in a cowboy and are constructing a temporary fence around the area in an effort to contain the cows. At least one four-wheeler ATV is on the scene, too; that may be used to corral the loose cows.

(Update, 1:15 pm) A semi truck hauling cows has overturned on southbound I-15 at mile marker 200 in Helena near the Lincoln Road exit.

Authorities have been using the "jaws of life" device to remove some of the cows from the truck; at least two cows are stuck inside. Firefighters are working to cut through the exterior of the truck to free the trapped cows.

Some of the cows managed to escape and have begun wandering through nearby fields; officials have brought in a cowboy and are constructing a temporary fence around the area in an effort to contain the cows. At least one four-wheeler ATV is on the scene, too; that may be used to corral the loose cows.

Initial reports indicate that no one has been injured; it is not yet known if any cows were injured, or what caused the accident.

KXLH reporter Marnee Banks is at the scene now and we will continue to update this story.

(First report, 12:17 pm.) A semi truck hauling cows has overturned on southbound I-15 at mile marker 200 in Helena near the Lincoln Road exit, according to Sheriff Leo Dutton.

Initial reports indicate that no one has been injured; it is not yet known if any cows were injured, or what caused the accident.

KXLH reporter Marnee Banks is en route to the scene now and we will bring you an update shortly.

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