This came fast and most ranchers didn’t have time to move all their head. You may want to try living on a ranch.
It's my guess that there are just too many sheep/cattle to move quickly. And, there are no shelters, valleys or protection for the animals. There is obviously no emergency plan or place for these kinds of catastrophes. The rancher just gets the insurance to pay up...and then has to hire help to come in and bury/burn the carcasses. I guess.
Agreed, most people have no idea what cattle ranching is all about. You just don't go out on the porch and ring the bell and all the cattle come running home. If you lost 200 head of cattle, chances are your ranch isn't measured in acres but rather square miles and "round up" time usually takes several days instead of several hours.
no valleys
ravines can be death traps for cattle and sheep due to the blowing and drifting snow.
I have a friend in N.W. Kansas who has lost many cattle over the years due to severe snow storms. The cattle will move down into the ravines thinking they're being protected from the wind and snow but the ravine will drift over, trapping and in many cases, completely burying them. And in many cases, those trapped then become easy prey for the coyotes.