quote:

Originally posted by tacfoley:

quote:

Originally posted by rburg:
So will someone make it easy and just tell us what exploded?

Methane?

Cows?

I wonder if those poor creatures spent most of their lives in a small space with no pasture time at all. If so, I hope that the owners suffered a financial disaster.

Good thing it wasn't the PANTEX facility.

Every time I (frequently) drive I-40 at Amarillo I think of this place. It's a "really big boom place" of nuclear weapons. I think the vast majority of Americans have no idea this place exists.

"Pantex is the primary United States nuclear weapons assembly and disassembly facility that aims to maintain the safety, security and reliability of the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile.[1][2] The facility is located in the Panhandle of Texas on a 16,000-acre (25 sq mi; 65 km2) site 17 miles (27 km) northeast of Amarillo, in Carson County, Texas. The plant is managed and operated for the United States Department of Energy (DOE) by CNS LLC and Sandia. Consolidated Nuclear Security, LLC (CNS) is composed of member companies Bechtel National, Inc., Leidos, Inc., Orbital ATK, Inc, and SOC LLC, with Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc. as a teaming subcontractor.[3] CNS also operates the Y-12 National Security Complex.[3]

As a major national security site, the plant and its grounds are strictly controlled, and the airspace above and around the plant is prohibited to civilian air traffic by the FAA as Prohibited Area P-47."

MORE ABOUT PANTEX, CLINK THE LINK HERE
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quote:

Originally posted by Pipe Smoker:
I wonder if those poor creatures spent most of their lives in a small space with no pasture time at all. If so, I hope that the owners suffered a financial disaster.

That's pretty crass!

Most meat and dairy you get from the grocery store is that way. It's high density commercial farming.

If you don't like it, buy pasture raised. However, certainly don't root for people's financial ruin as:

they feed a growing world from a shrinking agricultural footprint.

the cause of the fire/explosions is unknown. It could very well be ecoterrorists, hackers who took over their digester causing an explosion, etc.

quote:

Originally posted by Pipe Smoker:
I wonder if those poor creatures spent most of their lives in a small space with no pasture time at all. If so, I hope that the owners suffered a financial disaster.

No, if the cows aren’t allowed to move around they don’t produce well. Some of the pics show sand beds for them to lounge about on-which is indicative of them taking good care of their stock. Many places don’t use the sand beds as it’s more expensive than just straw and it’s better for the cows.

Blast overpressure can be nearly always fatal with pressure <20psi. Plus cows have lots of slurry and liquid in their GI tract, which make them especially blast intolerant.

From the size of the explosion, if the cattle were with 500’, they likely died of (in order) blast lung, internal injuries, primary impact, and shrapnel. Fire likely finished off injured cows the vets couldn’t get to in time. Secondary impact would be unlikely.

18,000 cows in a dead? I believe it.