A giant runaway inflatable pumpkin presented a hilarious sight as it barreled down a road in North Carolina holding up traffic as people gathered to corral it.
Daniel Wester was driving with his wife and three-month-old daughter to visit Phillips Farms’ Pumpkin Fest in Cary, North Carolina on Oct. 11, when he saw the giant gourd tumbling toward the car, he told Storyful. Video footage from the incident shows the inflatable rolling around the road as a man tries to bring it under control.
Phillips Farms' owner Michael Phillips told USA TODAY Oct. 14 the farm and most of Western and Central North Carolina "experienced tornadic winds and gusts" that morning.
"At some point, the cables holding our giant pumpkin down must have snapped, and the pumpkin took
itself for a 'walk' around our property," Phillips said.
Wester initially found the situation to be comical but quickly became concerned when he noticed a large air pump "whipping around" with it, worried it could injure the person trying to stop it or cause damage to his own vehicle.
"I had to make sure my baby was safe in the car, so I couldn’t stop in the middle of the road," Wester told Storyful. "But as soon as I could pull off, I got out and helped."
Though the video wrapped up with Wester getting out of his car to help, he said he helped deflate the pumpkin and move it to the farm’s storage shed.
Pumpkin has been 'rehomed' at corn maze
Phillips said it took about four people to "corral the giant pumpkin."
"The pumpkin was easily deflated in just a few minutes and has been 'rehomed' at our corn maze entrance where we don't expect it to escape again," the farm owner said.
Phillips Farms’, in an Oct. 11 post on social media, said "Pumpkinfest went a little off kilter this year, but we let it roll and had a gourdgeous Sunday."
Fortunately for the traffic, the pumpkin did not cause a major jam.
Phillips said the giant pumpkin blocked just a few cars as it made its way around the "sunflower field and family fun park up the road, eventually turning itself in to our shop's driveway (with the help of some staff)."
Free farm tickets for Wester, his family
The farm is now thanking Wester for his services by gifting him and his family free Pumpkinfest tickets. They will be able to explore the park an hour before it opens and "have it all to themselves."
Meanwhile, the farm also leaned into the comical element of the incident, sharing memes inspired by the viral incident.
Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at sshafiq@usatodayco.com and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Watch giant runaway pumpkin barrel down road in North Carolina
