Queensland floods: 500,000 cattle die in floods and rain

After seven years of drought, elated cattle farmers in the Australian state of Queensland welcomed the rainstorms heading their way as a blessing.But now, after one of the most devastating deluges in state history, a billion-dollar industry could be left in tatters.Authorities estimate that nearly 500,000 cattle -- worth about $213 million (AU$300 million) -- have been killed by flooding in Queensland's north since the rain began falling late last month, CNN affiliate Seven News reported.The downpours have ended but the cattle carcasses remain, baking in the record-breakingsummer heat. If not buried or burned, they will pose a health hazard. Video taken from overhead at one location shows scores of dead cattle huddled together amid the devastation."People have gone through drought, they have come out of years and years of drought, and they have now gone smack-bang into a natural disaster the likes of which no one out there has seen before," Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said.One of the farmers affected, Rachel Anderson, says she lost an estimated 2,000 cattle in the floods and more are still dying from pneumonia from the cold rain and wind."Some cattle are still quite weak from enduring the many days of rain and not able to access feed," Anderson,