A runaway Zebra was shot dead Wednesday after it escaped a German circus and disrupted traffic on a major highway, police said. The elusive animal caused a two-car accident on the A20 highway. No one was injured in the collision.

Two zebras escaped the circus near the town of Tessin, but one was caught early Wednesday, Rostock district police said in a news release. It is unclear how the zebras escaped.

The A20 highway was temporarily closed as attempts to secure the animal unfolded. "The animal was going in the wrong direction on the autobahn from Tessin to Rostock," a department spokesperson told German broadcaster Deutsche Welle.

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The zebra damaged two cars, including a patrol vehicle, and fled to a nearby field in the municipality of Thelkow.

A zebra runs across a road in Thelkow, Germany. Bernd Wuestneck / AFP/Getty

Police and a circus trainer made more attempts to secure the zebra, but it was eventually shot.

"The exact circumstances are still being clarified," police said. The other zebra was returned to the circus.