An entire herd of buffalo has been shot dead by law enforcement in upstate New York after they escaped from a farm . Around 15 animals ran away from their pen in Schodack in Rensselaer County on Thursday evening and then swam across the Hudson River . They then started running down the Thruway , a series of toll roads which link up the major cities in the state , including Buffalo and New York City . Three men hired by the farm were cleared to open fire Friday afternoon in a stream in woods in the town of Coeymans , about 10 miles south of the state capital Albany . Scroll down for video . Around 15 animals ran away from a farm in Schodack , upstate New York , on Thursday and then swam across the Hudson River . They were all shot dead by law enforcement on Friday . The herd are pictured crossing a road in Bethlehem , New York . The owner of the farm from where they escaped say the group managed to swim across the Hudson River . They then made there way towards Bethlehem , New York . An armed law enforcement official stands in the driveway near where the buffalo were on the loose . Three men hired by the farm were cleared to open fire Friday afternoon in a stream in woods in the town of Coeymans , about 10 miles south of the state capital Albany . One of the men firing at the animals gets into a heated exchange with officials before another is bundled into a car by deputies . Police say the decision was made after experts agreed tranquilizers would not be effective and no portable corrals could hold the animals . George Mesick , the farm 's owner , told Albany 's Times Union they must have swam across the river to the town of Bethlehem , where they wandered Friday morning between Interstate 87 and the river 's west bank . The herd crossed a local road at about 11:15 a.m. and ambled onto the Thruway in a spot 10 miles south of Albany . Drivers slowed to avoid the buffalo . The animals safely crossed the northbound lanes and then trotted south on the shoulder into some woods . Mesick had previously admitted he had little hope they would be captured unharmed . 'There is a zero percent chance of getting them back right now I think . I just want to get this done with as fast as possible so that no one gets hurt , ' he said earlier on Friday . He would have tried to bring the herd in himself , but they are wild and not tame . A police helicopter was hovering over them to make sure the group did not split . The buffalo are seen heading down the side of the interstate next to a sign pointing towards the Massachusetts Turnpike and Boston . Vehicles were forced to slow down as they tried to avoid the rampaging animals running beside the busy road . The animals safely crossed the northbound lanes on Friday morning and then trotted south on the shoulder into some woods .
Around 15 animals escaped from a farm in Schodack in upstate New York on Thursday evening then crossed the river . They safely crossed roads and made it onto the Thurway which links up the major cities in the state . However authorities took the decision to gun them down because they posed a danger to the public . Police say the decision was made after experts agreed tranquilizers would not be effective .