Moment rampaging bull wandered housing estate before police shot it dead after beast charged at father and his kids on the school run

A father of-two has recalled the terrifying moment a rampaging bull charged towards him and his children while he was on the school run before the beast was shot dead by armed police.

Large parts of Haslington, Cheshire were put into lockdown after the bull broke loose from a local abattoir.

Police eventually shot the animal dead after failing to calm it as it charged near a primary school. 

Andy Lumb, 42, has revealed that he was dropping his daughters, aged four and six, off at school on Wednesday when the animal ‘clattered past on the pavement’ right in front of them.

He just managed to get his two daughters inside their house but the bull ‘charged through the hedge’ and ‘only just missed’ him.

Andy Lumb, 42, was dropping his daughters, aged four and six, off at school on Wednesday when the bull (pictured) ‘clattered past on the pavement’ right in front of them 

The bull was described as ‘agitated’ and ‘in a state of panic’ after escaping from a local abattoir

Footage shows the bull walking around the street moments after it chased Andy around his car.

Andy said: ‘I was just leaving the house in the morning to do the school run on foot with my four and six-year-old daughters when the bull clattered past on the pavement right in front of us.

‘I was just able to get my girls back in the house when the bull turned and charged through the hedge at me and chased me round my car and only just missed me.

‘The animal was clearly in distress in an unfamiliar environment and [was] in a state of panic.’

Cheshire Police said they were called to Wells Avenue after reports that a bull was on the loose charging at people.

Locals and pupils in the primary school were put into lockdown as there was an ‘immediate danger to the public.’

The bull was later shot dead by police, but Andy said it was a last resort by officers who had tried to calm the agitated bull.

He told Nub news: ‘A lot of effort was made to calm and capture the bull before it was shot. Please believe this was the last thing I wanted to see or my daughter’s to potentially witness either. But, if there’s any doubt about the danger, just imagine if we’d left 60 seconds sooner and been that much further from our front door.

‘The school is only about a 100 yards from the end of the road also.’

The bull was pictured in Haslington, Cheshire, shortly before 9am on Wednesday

Pupils at The Dingle Primary School in Cheshire were put into lockdown while police rushed to the scene

The bull was seen charging at people in Wells Avenue in Haslington, Cheshire

Andy said the bull broke loose from a nearby abattoir, briefly ran on the main road before ending up on his street.

He said: ‘There’s an abattoir in the village and it escaped from there. It’s only round the corner from our street so it would have briefly run on the main road before turning off into the side streets and ending up in Wells Avenue.’

However, some local residents have said that they hope the police will ‘take this matter further with whoever allowed the animal to escape.’

One local wrote on social media: ‘It’s terrified me what could have happened, it nearly charged me but I fell forward out the way. My daughter was on her own further down the path as it charged ahead.

‘I hope the police will take this matter further with whoever allowed the animal to escape.’

A Cheshire Police spokesperson said: ‘Local officers, supported by firearms officers, attended the scene and local residents, including the nearby school, were advised to stay inside as the bull in its agitated state posed an immediate threat to their safety.

‘There was also a real risk of the bull escaping onto the main road and surrounding housing estates which could have caused a serious accident. Officers, with the help of the owner, attempted to secure the bull but the owner was unable to do so and the immediate danger to the public and the officers was high. A decision had to be made to dispatch the animal before anyone was seriously hurt.

‘This decision is never taken lightly and the main focus here was to protect residents, some of whom were dropping children off at the nearby school.’

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