According to the US state of Kansas, extreme heat and humidity have killed thousands of cattle in the past few days. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment was aware of at least 2,000 cattle deaths as of Tuesday as a result of the high temperatures and high humidity, said spokesman Matthew Lara. The sweltering temperatures continue to threaten livestock. Extreme heat waves are a consequence of the climate crisis.
Deadly heat stress
The number of 2,000 dead cattle relates to facilities that have asked the agency for help disposing of carcasses, Lara said. Cattle began suffering from heat stress when temperatures and humidity soared in western Kansas last weekend and cooling winds failed to materialize, said Scarlett Hagins, spokeswoman for the Kansas Livestock Association. The animals could not get used to the sudden change.
Temperatures hit as high as 42 degrees Celsius in northwestern Kansas earlier in the week, said Drew Lerner, president of World Weather Inc. This weekend, parts of western Kansas and the Texas Panhandle will reach as high as 43 or 44 degrees, despite stronger winds and a lower one Humidity will help minimize cattle deaths, he said.
The deaths are weighing on the US beef industry as producers have reduced herds due to the drought and grappled with feed costs boosted by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, tightening global grain supplies. Kansas is the third largest cattle state in the US after Texas and Nebraska with more than 2.4 million cattle on fattening farms.
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