Over 18,000 cattle killed in farm explosion in U.S. state of Texas

More than 18,000 cattle died in a fire explosion in the U.S. state of Texas, according to reports.

The fire torched the Southfolk Dairy Farm in Dimmit, in Texas Panhandle region, local authorities reported.

A dairy farm worker was hospitalized due to severe burns, and he is in critical but stable condition, according to a report by The Dallas Morning News.

The cause of fire remains unknown, but the overheating of electrical equipment could have caused the ignition, said Castro County Sheriff Sal Rivera

A massive and thick black pile of smoke rose from the dairy farm, visible in the photos and videos that circulated on social media.

This was the biggest incident of cattle perishing in a fire since Animal Welfare Institute, the animal rights group, started tracking farm fires in 2013, added the report.

Texas is home to some 625,000 cows producing 16.5 billion pounds of milk a year, making it the country's fourth biggest milk producer, according to the Texas Association of Dairymen.