Some 18,000 cows perished in the explosion of a dairy farm in Texas, in the southern United States, authorities announced on Thursday, who also reported one person injured.
“This is the deadliest livestock farm fire in Texas history and the investigation and clearing is likely to take time,” Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller said. , in a press release.
The explosion and fire ravaged, in the night from Monday to Tuesday, the Southfork dairy farm, located near the town of Dimmitt, in the Texas region of the Panhandle.
Firefighters and police rushed to the scene “discovered that a person was trapped inside”. The farm worker was rescued and airlifted to a hospital, the Castro County Sheriff’s Office posted on Facebook.
The origin of the explosion and fire has not been determined, said Mr Miller, who described the event as “terrible”.
“As soon as we know the cause and the facts surrounding this tragedy, we will ensure that the public is fully informed, so that such disasters can be avoided in the future,” he added.
Castro County Sheriff Sal Rivera told CBS Amarillo that a barn manure system may have been “overheating.”
He added that the methane could “ignite and then spread with the explosion and the fire”, specifying that an investigation has been opened.
04/14/2023 12:26:21 – Houston (United States) (AFP) – © 2023 AFP