Massive blaze at Texas dairy farm kills 18,000 cattle, injures worker in deadliest methane explosion
DIMMIT, TEXAS: A suspected methane explosion at a dairy farm in Texas has resulted in the death of 18,000 cattle, making it the deadliest barn fire involving cattle since the Animal Welfare Institute began tracking such incidents in 2013 as per a report. The animals, a mix of Jersey and Holstein cows, were valued at around $2,000 each, resulting in a total loss of $36 million.
The fire, which broke out at the South Fork Dairy in Dimmitt, also severely injured a female employee. Although the cause of the explosion is still unknown, it is thought that machinery overheating ignited methane produced by cows naturally on dairy farms through enteric fermentation and manure storage.
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'It was crazy...kind of unheard of'
The fire has not only had a devastating impact on the farm but also on the local community, which relies heavily on the dairy industry for its economy. Residents have expressed their concern over the loss of jobs and tax revenue for the county and other municipalities. However, they have also rallied around Frank Brand and his family who run the farm.
“That’s a lot of the money that we have and then a lot of milk also too. So I think it’s really crazy that that happened,” Alex Aguilar, a Dimmitt resident told KFDA. “It was crazy because it’s like something like that happening here is like kind of unheard of, you know. So it was just like it was a mind-blowing thing to hear,” said Sullivan. “It is kind of painful because it’s like that’s kind of what we do here, and that’s how we get our money for like the city and all that. So that’s just a major drop for us.”
'We look in the distance and there’s just a big cloud'
The explosion, which caused a massive fire and smoke plume, took responders hours to bring under control. The explosion could be seen for miles, including in several surrounding towns. “It was lowkey, crazy to hear about because we were just chilling and then we just heard a boom. Then we look in the distance and there’s just a big cloud,” Renzo Sullivan, a Dimmitt resident said. “We look up, we’re inside and we go out and look through the window, and we just see clouds. It was like an explosion,” Maleki Laurent, another resident said. “The whole thing was on fire, and it was crazy. It was crazy. And there was big, massive black air and it looked like fog in the street. And it was all burnt--the place,” one more resident told the outlet.
Castro Country Sheriff Sal Rivera told KCBD that they received 911 calls regarding an explosion and fire at Southfork Dairy Farm. Rivera said initial calls suggested that several people were trapped but "it turned out to be just one." The female worker was flown to UMC in Lubbock to receive treatment for her injuries.
Out of the 19,000 cattle on the farm, 18,000 were destroyed in the fire
"The damage to the facility is quite extensive. We have confirmed that out of the 19,000 cattle on the farm, 18,000 were destroyed in the fire," Rivera said. “It was probably what they call a ‘honey badger,’ like a vacuum that sucks manure and water out. It is possible that it overheated and the methane and things like that might have ignited and spread out with an explosion and a fire,” he said.
Since 2013, close to 6.5 million cows have been killed in barn fires
The surviving cows will be housed in another facility owned by the Brand family. The South Fork Dairy was the newest of the 15 dairies in Castro County, having been built less than three years ago. The tragedy has highlighted the issue of fire safety in the dairy industry. Margie Fishman, Public Relations Manager with Animal Welfare Institute, stated, "We hope the industry will remain focused on this issue and strongly encourage farms to adopt commonsense fire safety measures." Since 2013, close to 6.5 million cows have been killed in barn fires, making it a significant welfare issue.
'Mind-boggling' and 'a real tragedy'
The incident has also sparked concern over the environmental impact of the fire. Cows emit 40% of the world's methane gas due to their high-fiber diet and the explosion is likely to have released a significant amount of the greenhouse gas into the atmosphere. Environmental officers are dealing with the charred bodies of the cows and the burnt-out barn.
Dimmitt Mayor Roger Malone described the incident as "mind-boggling" and "a real tragedy," while local resident Alex Aguilar stated that "it is kind of painful because it’s like that’s kind of what we do here, and that’s how we get our money for like the city and all that. So that’s just a major drop for us."