The Knauth family, who have managed their land and cattle business in Milford, Ill. for 50 years, faced serious challenges due to Wednesday afternoon’s severe weather. High winds impacted their property significantly, leading to unexpected cattle issues.

More than 500 cows escaped from an Iroquois County farm after severe weather came through the area.

“Arriving here this morning is heartbreaking,” expressed Kinsey Mabbitt. “You expect to see the buildings my father toiled so hard to construct, but they have vanished. It’s as if everything has disappeared.”

Mabbitt and Konnor Knauth said there were nearly 700 cows seen outside of their pens after the storm passed by.

“When I noticed the cattle outside their cleaned-up pen, it was alarming,” remarked Konnor Knauth. “Taking just a few steps further, I could see the damage near the grain bins. We lost a tarp, and there’s steel everywhere—that’s an entire barn gone.”

Everyone did what they could to help out. They were able to get most of the cows back in their environment, but the family still has about 60 more left to find.

“Yeah, it’s just a nightmare,” said Kirk Knauth. “I mean, these are really good times in the cattle business, and we don’t know what we’re going to do.”

Mabbitt said losing these cows means losing out on money.

“Everything that we do is to help other people,” Mabbitt said. “I mean, having a feedlot like this is what feeds the world.”

But neighbors stepped up in a big way for the family. More than twenty people started driving around in ATVs and one person helped by looking from the sky with a plane.

“It makes you feel really blessed,” Konnor Knauth said. “And I mean, you have people in the community that want to help you like that and drop everything to come help.”

As for the property, they’re estimating it will take about six months to rebuild.