It will be a long time before the total toll of the North Texas wildfires can be counted. Over 1950 square miles of grassland plains and scrubby low brush burned in the Smokehouse Creek Fire, the largest in state history. Ranchers in the Panhandle lost thousands of cattle. The fire likely started as an electrical fire caused by power lines, fueled to monstrous proportions by dry feed, unseasonable warmth, and high winds.
In the aftermath, ranchers search for dead cattle across the burn. Each head is worth up to $3000, adding up to devastating losses for the small family operations that graze the region. Years of genetics are lost forever. Fencelines, barns, and homes were charred in the fire. A mile of fenceline can cost $10,000.
Regional drought had already brought cattle numbers in the U.S. down to a 75-year low before the fire. The Panhandle is home to about 85% of all cattle in the state; roughly 11 million head.
The cattle that are left are in desperate need of feed. Ranchers from other parts of the state have mobilized to bring bales of hay to North Texas.
Donate:
State of Texas Agriculture Relief (STAR) Fund
Department of Agriculture Hay Hotline
Read more:
USDA offers assistance for Texas farmers and ranchers impacted by wildfires. BEEF Magazine
VIDEO: Texas cattle rancher shares gut-wrenching wildfire details. BlazeTV
VIDEO: Texas farmers and ranchers see long road of recovery ahead after devastating wildfires. PBS
North Texas rancher adopts calf from the ashes of the Texas wildfires. CBS News Texas
Texas Panhandle ranchers face losses and grim task of removing dead cattle killed by wildfires. KAGS
Texas women and others make efforts to help neighbors battling wildfires in the Panhandle. KXXV
