Runaway zebras recaptured in Seattle, 1 still on the loose

Asia Bown
·2 min read
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A newborn baby zebra stands by its mother in Belgrade zoo, Serbia, Thursday, April 4, 2024. On Sunday April 28, 2024, four zebras escaped a trailer in Seattle along Interstate 90.
A newborn baby zebra stands by its mother in Belgrade zoo, Serbia, Thursday, April 4, 2024. On Sunday April 28, 2024, four zebras escaped a trailer in Seattle along Interstate 90. | Darko Vojinovic

Among the wildlife you’d expect to see in Washington, zebras probably don’t factor into that group. Still, drivers along Interstate 90 near North Bend, Washington, were treated to a wild zebra chase.

Four privately owned zebras were being transported via trailer to Montana, for reasons unclear to authorities, when the driver stopped to secure the trailer.

According to The Seattle Times, Laura Fisher was driving on Interstate 90 when she caught sight of the zebras on the verge of making their escape. The trailer door was open and after being signaled by other motorists, the driver pulled over to secure his vehicle.

“Our main concern was that they were going to jump out of the trailer at 70 and probably die and cause a major issue for the other drivers,” Fisher said, per The Seattle Times.

The zebras fled the scene. Videos posted to Citizen App, which allows users to access safety alerts in their area and the ability themselves to post news, show the zebras in the road, blocking drivers, KOMO News reported.

One of the area’s residents, Whitney Blomquist, saw the zebras in her yard after being alerted to their movements by her security cameras.

“They start walking up my driveway and they make their way over to one of my rentals,” Blomquist said of the footage, per The Independent. “I’ve had plenty of bears in my yard but this was a new one, for sure.”

Zebras walking the streets of Seattle marks a first for the city

Washington State Patrol spokesperson Trooper Rick Johnson wrote in a post to X, “This is a first for me and all @wastatepatrol troopers involved. The community has come together to help.”

According to KOMO News, neighbors helped “by saddling up and ultimately helping to move two of the zebras to a pen, and eventually onto a trailer to head back to Montana.”

As of Sunday night, three of the four zebras have been recaptured, Johnson said, per The Independent. “Once we get the other one — I won’t say in custody — but back corralled, it is a feel-good story,” he said.