A rogue bull remained on the loose on Long Island mid-afternoon Wednesday, more than 24 hours after it bolted from a farm where it was set to be slaughtered as part of the Muslim holiday Eid ul, according to Suffolk County police.
Police said Wednesday the bull was last seen in a local nature preserve the night before. They've turned over search efforts to multiple animal rescue groups, which will stay in the vicinity until the bull has been recaptured, officials said.
The bull was first reported to be on the run just after 10 a.m. Tuesday in Shirley. Authorities had to briefly close Sunrise Highway in both directions near exit 58.
The roughly 1,500-pound black bull then ventured over to Mastic, near the farm where it lived. There's no indication where it could be now, nor was it immediately clear what would happen to the animal should it be secured.
Get South Florida local news, weather forecasts and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC South Florida newsletters.
Multiple residents took to social media to report receiving a text message warning from the county police, urging them to stay indoors.
One widely circulated video posted to Facebook shows the animal charging through a woman's front yard as a swarm of cops give chase.
"I actually slapped myself in the head and said this can't be true, I don't believe this," said Michael Gaisser, who saw the animal and shot video of it running.
U.S. & World
Another witness, Debbie Donley, came face-to-face with the bull near her front yard.
"He stopped right there, looked at me, I looked at him, and I was gonna run into my house but he ran next door," she said.
