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Video shows dead calf washing up in Harvey floodwaters

Ranchers face losses
Dead cows found washed up in Texas 00:25

CBS News captured video of a dead calf washing up in Harvey's floodwaters in Texas, the state that leads the country in cattle production.

The calf's rancher told CBS News that he depends on the sale of the cattle for his livelihood, but the majority of his supply is now dead or taint due to Harvey.

According to Reuters, about 1.2 million cattle -- 27 percent of the state's cattle herd -- are located in the 54-county area drenched by Harvey's relentless rainfall. Cattle ranchers tried to move their livestock out of the way as the storm headed toward the Texas coast, but the huge path and the longevity made it impossible in some area.

Chuck Kiker, who raises cattle on his farm near Beaumont, told Reuters he chose to leave his animals in place but he was surprised by the storm's severity.

"You can't move animals at this point, so you're kind of stuck because of high water everywhere. There's really no place to move them," he said to Reuters.

Harvey could become one of the . The Houston metropolitan area is the fourth-largest city by population in the country, and it accounts for about 3 percent of the nation's gross domestic product.

Harvey drenched Texas with five days of rain after first making landfall on Friday night near Corpus Christi. The storm made a second landfall Tuesday night in southwest Louisiana, about 40 miles from Beaumont, Texas. It is now expected to move northeast through Louisiana and could drench Memphis with up to 10 inches of rain.

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