The Gregory Development Road, south of Charters Towers, was closed until 5.30am this morning after a cattle truck rolled leading to the deaths of 18 head.
A police spokesperson said the single-vehicle accident that involved the third trailer of a road train tipping occurred at Llanarth, 86km south of Charters Towers, at 11pm last night.
The spokesperson said the driver was not injured, but 18 cows had to be euthanased by police.
The spokesperson said it was still too early to say how the accident occurred but investigations were continuing.
It is not known at this stage where the cattle were loaded or their destination.
A Charters Towers Regional Council spokesperson said a council roads crew attended to manage traffic flow through the site whilst emergency responders were in attendance.
The spokesperson said crews then cleared the road of any debris, inspected the road infrastructure for any safety defects, carried out any necessary repairs if required and then reopened the road to the public.