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MISSOULA, Mont. (AP) — A truck that is dripping rancid juices from thousands of pounds of rotting chicken is still sitting in the heat at a Montana truck stop.
It was abandoned there at least three days ago by a driver from an Idaho trucking company. He had texted the company, demanding more money -- and when the company refused, authorities say, he parked the truck and took off.
The trailer holds about 37,000 pounds of formerly-frozen chicken, worth $80,000.
Today, it was surrounded by sawhorses, crime scene tape and flies, as temperatures flirted with 90 degrees for a second-straight day.
A health official says the trucking company's insurance provider is in charge of cleaning up the mess. She tells a newspaper (the Missoulian) that it won't be easy. A landfill will have to be prepared for the load -- and they might have to dig a separate hole for it.
Police are searching for the truck driver.
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APPHOTO MTMIS101: A semitrailer carrying 35,000 pounds of frozen chicken is abandoned at a western Montana truck, Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2014 in Missoula, Mont. An employee of an Idaho trucking company abandoned the trailer load of frozen chicken after the company reportedly refused a ransom demand, Missoula County officials said. The 53-foot trailer, dripping the rancid juices of rotting chicken, was discovered near the Flying J Truck Stop west of Missoula on Tuesday. Truck stop manager Crystal Friede said the trailer had been there since at least Saturday. It contained 35,000 pounds of chicken worth $80,000, officials said. (AP Photo/The Missoulian, Martin Kidston) (24 Sep 2014)
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