A herd of cattle on Tuesday evening disrupted vehicular movement along the Calabar-Itu highway, causing gridlock and panic among motorists and commuters around the Itu axis of the major road linking Cross River and Akwa Ibom states.
The cattle, numbering more than 100, reportedly spread across both lanes of the highway while being led by herders, forcing motorists to remain stranded for nearly an hour. Eyewitnesses said the animals continued moving along the road despite repeated horns from motorists, with some reportedly lying on the highway.
A commercial driver, Etim Bassey, described the incident as unfortunate and called for stronger measures to regulate the movement of herders. Another commuter travelling from Uyo to Calabar, Rosemary Ukpong, said similar incidents had become frequent along the route and urged authorities to address open grazing on major highways.
Other motorists, including commercial driver Aniekan Lazarus, said they were forced to make dangerous manoeuvres to avoid colliding with the cattle. A senior immigration officer travelling to Calabar also called for swift government intervention, expressing concern over the disruption of movement on a major federal highway.
The cattle were eventually moved off the road as of the time of filing the report, although traffic congestion persisted due to the backlog of vehicles that had accumulated during the incident.
