Authorities reported on Thursday that a terrible explosion and fire at a dairy farm in the southern US state of Texas resulted in the deaths of nearly 18,000 cattle and the injury of one agricultural worker.

Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller stated in a statement that this was the deadliest barn fire for cattle in Texas history and the investigation and cleanup may take some time.

On Monday night, an explosion and a fire tore through the South Fork Dairy Farms in the Texas Panhandle, close to the town of Dimmitt.

Firefighters and law enforcement officials arrived on the scene quickly and “determined that one person was trapped inside”, the Castro County Sheriff’s Office wrote on Facebook.

According to the report, the individual was rescued and flown to a hospital in Lubbock.

Miller called the incident a horrendous event, although the reason for the explosion and fire was not immediately known.

In order to prevent catastrophes like this in the future, he promised, “Once we know the cause and the facts surrounding this tragedy, we will make sure the public is fully informed”.

Sal Rivera, the sheriff of Castro County, suggested that a system for removing manure from the barns may have overheated.

He speculated that methane “ignited and then spread out with the explosion and the fire”, adding that a probe would have to be used to ascertain the specific reason.

“Farms must do more to protect animals by implementing commonsense fire safety measures”, said the Animal Care Institute, one of the country’s oldest animal care organizations, in response to the Texas disaster.

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