The devastation of the Texas wildfires has killed more than 7,000 cows, not including cows that were euthanized for their serious injuries.
Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller said CBS News that the Lone Star State has not recovered the full number of livestock lost to the Panhandle fires, but the number is expected to increase.
‘Their hooves have been burned, their calves have been burned; They cannot breastfeed their babies. In fact, we’re going to end up having to cull a lot of cattle just because they won’t be able to survive, even though they survived,” Miller said.
As of Thursday morning, more than a million acres of land have been destroyed by the infernos and 66 counties in the state have burn bans, according to Texas A&M Forest Service.
More than 5,400 people in Texas were without power for a day last week as lines were knocked out due to fire damage. Xcel Energy has since taken the blame for the downed lines and said its equipment appeared to have caused the Smokehouse Creek Fire.
The devastation of the Texas wildfires has killed more than 7,000 cows, not including cows that were euthanized for their serious injuries.
As of Thursday morning, more than a million acres of land have burned due to the infernos and 66 counties in the state have established burn bans.
The service reported that three fires are still active: the Grape Vine Creek Fire in Gray County, which is 96 percent contained, the Smokehouse Creek Fire in Hutchinson County, which is 74 percent contained, and the Windy Deuce Fire in Moore County, which is 89 percent contained. percent contained.
The Smokehouse Fire, which burned approximately 1,059,570 acres, is the largest wildfire in state history. Many of the state’s ranches are more than 100 years old.
‘Its very stressful. Let’s say you are the sixth, seventh, eighth generation, you are in charge of the family wealth. At some point, you no longer own the land, but the land belongs to you,’ he said.
‘All family memories have disappeared. All his inheritance, all his memories have disappeared; many of them only have the clothes on their back.’
Miller said that with more than 11 million cattle in Texas, he estimated the final number of cattle lost could be as high as 10,000.
He said he doesn’t believe the loss will have an “overall effect on market-wide pricing” across the country, but that it remains “devastating.”
And those cows, right now, are worth between $2,500 and $3,000 and there is no insurance on them. That is just total annihilation,” he stated.
According wise voterBy 2023, Texas was the nation’s top meat producer.
Known as the “undisputed champion of beef production,” Texas had more than 4 million cows last year.
Miller said one couple who were “just getting started” in the cattle industry lost their entire herd of 200 cows and another rancher lost 700 cows.
The Smokehouse Fire, which burned approximately 1,059,570 acres, is the largest wildfire in state history. Many of the state’s ranches are more than 100 years old.
Miller said that with more than 11 million cattle in Texas, he has estimated the final number of cattle lost could be as high as 10,000.
Chance Bowers, the operator of the X-Cross-X ranch, told the Associated Press that across his three ranches, numbering 1,000, he believes he lost 250 of them to the wildfires.
Bowers said: “I’ve spent the last 15 years building this herd of cows,” he said. “And you can lose it overnight.” We’ve been very blessed, very fortunate that we’re only going to lose 200, you know?
He said that in addition to the tragic loss of the cows, farmers also lost their cotton production in the fire.
Rick Yantis, a Lamb County farmer, told the Texas Farm Bureau Radio Network that “the ground is toast” and that the winds and heat felt “more intense” than last year’s fires.
‘Dryland cotton is blistered and burned. Much of the crop is turning brown and dying. “I’ve never seen it get to this point,” he added.
About 120 miles of power lines were burned by the fires and also left seven seed and grain traders “completely wiped out.”
Without the seeds and grain, there was no food left for the surviving cows, no electricity or water, Miller said.
He said it is estimated that between 3,000 and 4,000 miles of fencing were destroyed in the fires and that just one mile costs about $10,000.
Miller said he is not only heartbroken for the animals lost in the fires, but also for the mental state of the farmers who were left with virtually nothing.
“The highest suicide rates in the nation are our veterans and our farmers,” Miller said, adding that his office offers mental health support to people in the industry, called the AgriStress Helpline.
Wildfires raging across the Texas Panhandle have led to evacuations, power outages, the temporary closure of a nuclear weapons facility, countless animal deaths and the deaths of two people.
Last week, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott issued a disaster declaration for 60 counties in his state experiencing the impact of the out-of-control flames.
“Texans are urged to limit activities that could generate sparks and take precautions to keep their loved ones safe,” Abbott said.
More than 5,400 people in Texas were without power for a day last week as lines were knocked out due to fire damage. Xcel Energy has since taken the blame for the downed lines and said its equipment appeared to have caused the Smokehouse Creek Fire.
Wildfires raging across the Texas Panhandle have led to evacuations, power outages, the temporary closure of a nuclear weapons facility, countless animal deaths and the deaths of two people.
Another rancher, Shane Pennington, 56, told CNN he lost dozens and dozens of cattle in the Smokehouse Creek fire.
Since then, the community has relied on assistance through donations such as farm equipment, food, clothing, and one woman even said she is providing foggers to animals that inhaled toxic smoke from the wildfires.
The Pantex plant, the country’s main facility that assembles and dismantles the US nuclear arsenal, evacuated most of its staff Tuesday night.
However, the next morning, Pantex announced that the facility was “open for normal day shift operations” and that all staff were required to report to work according to their assigned schedule.
Another rancher, Shane Pennington, 56, told CNN he lost dozens and dozens of cattle in the Smokehouse Creek fire.
He said his staff found around 50 dead cattle, while some lactating cows desperately search for their lost calves.
“We didn’t find many calves,” he said. “So I know they burned.”
The flames that engulfed the ranch just days ago decimated the Pennington herd and caused horrific injuries to some of the cows that did not die.
Some of the animals’ tails were burned, others were blinded by the flames.
“It’s extremely difficult to see them suffer. I’ve raised some of them since they were babies,” she said. “It’s just difficult.”