One employee was left in “critical condition” after an explosion and blaze in Dimmitt, Texas, officials said. A thick plume of smoke mushroomed over the plains.
A months-long event, just outside the park, was intended to keep the animals from spreading a disease to livestock. But its scope and other removal measures affecting hundreds more have generated opposition.
U.S. agencies have enlisted aerial shooters to cull about 150 cattle that trample habitats and threaten hikers in the Gila Wilderness. Cattle growers say the plan violates laws and regulations.
Bison once numbered in the tens of millions in the United States. Now, a nonprofit is working to restore the shortgrass prairie, where the American icons and their ecosystem can thrive again.