A heavily laden cargo truck plowed through a flock of sheep crossing a highway in China's remote western region, killing 110 animals and closing a highway for eight hours.

A shepherd was also seriously injured when the 50-ton truck loaded with coal ash suffered brake failure and was unable to avoid smashing into the flock, which was being taken to pasture, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

The truck eventually ground to a halt because of the massive pile of sheep carcasses in front of the vehicle, it said. It took police eight hours to clear the carcasses off the road, it said.

The accident occurred Thursday in the far western Xinjiang region's Yili district, it said.

The report said the shepherd was hospitalized.