© Unknown20 of Wesley and Sammy Anderson’s Angus cows were killed by lightning on Wednesday afternoon
The cows congregated underneath a tree when the storm rolled in, and were killed when lightning struck and traveled through the group.
"We're fourth generation farmers, and my dad and I don't ever remember seeing anything like this," said Sammy. "I've heard of cows being hit standing in ponds, but not this many - and I've never seen it myself."
Sammy said that it's normal for cows to congregate under trees during storms.
"There was a barn in this pasture, but it was struck by lightning and burned down," he said. "Even when it was standing, only a few cows used it during a storm. It's strange though, you can't even see where it struck the tree."
His wife, Tammy, said she noticed the cows lying under the tree for over an hour and knew something was wrong.
"The sad part is that one of the ones killed was a baby, and its mother keeps walking around it - clearly disturbed because her calf won't get up," said Tammy.
The farmers will have to bottle feed some young calves that lost their mothers.
The family didn't have much luck finding a company to haul the cows off. They contacted the Agricultural Office and several pet food manufacturers.
"We will probably just have to get a backhoe and bury them," said Tammy. "It's unfortunate, I wish they could be used for something instead of going to waste."
Sammy said the cows were worth an estimated $10,000 and that he has about 30 head remaining.
"When you farm you just do the best you can to deal with what Mother Nature hands you," he said. "It's just part of farming - sometimes the unexpected happens and there's really nothing you can do except keep going."
- Staff writer Kelli Easterling can be reached at (910) 997-3111 ext. 18, or by email at keasterling@heartlandpublications.com.
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