Loose Kangaroo Causes Chaos On Alabama Interstate

Occurred on April 29, 2025 / Auburn, Alabama, USA

Info from Licensor: "So there we were, cruising down I-85 between Tuskegee and Auburn, Alabama, just your average family van returning from a visit to Georgia. We’d been visiting my aunt, who’s battling cancer—heartfelt week. Inside our noble vessel: My mom (Jane Carver) and 82 yr old Aunt Carol (Honely) were in the front, peacefully listening to Alan Jackson sing gospel hymns like we were on a Southern Baptist road trip to heaven. I was in the middle row, elbow-deep in child-wrangling, pouring apple juice into tiny cups for my 6 and 9 yr olds Bree and Ella Kate- like a caffeinated flight attendant who only serves fruit beverages and existential dread.

Suddenly, because the universe enjoys chaos, a kangaroo (yes, a literal kangaroo) came hopping down the interstate toward us like it was late for a meeting. The yellow car in front of us did what any rational person would do when faced with unexpected marsupial traffic—it stopped. The kangaroo bonked into it lightly, shrugged off the encounter like a champ, and hopped away unharmed with all the nonchalance of someone leaving a bad date.

We, slowing to avoid becoming part of a Looney Tunes sketch, were rear-ended by another vehicle driven by a mom with twins. (Can’t blame her—we all stopped really quickly and she was probably distracted by the same surreal wildlife scene unfolding in real-time.) The impact pushed us forward, and we gave the yellow car a gentle, involuntary love tap.

As for Sheila—the kangaroo—she is, believe it or not, a beloved pet. She belongs to a man named Patrick Starr (yes, that Patrick Starr, and no, not the cartoon). Sheila was eventually tranquilized, lovingly wrangled, and is now awake, unharmed, and back with Patrick, probably retelling her version of the story to a bunch of very confused wallabies."