Power steering fluid every where and is leaking from, top of the gear box?

My truck is a supper-duty with a suspension lift kit and big tires. Last night while maneuvering around the pump at the gas station I lost power steering. When I got out I found red color fluid all over the floor and even splashed up onto the battery, a guy at the gas station said its because the big tires are a lot harder to turn and that created a lot of pressure and blew the gasket in the top of the steering gear box. Looking closer I found that the fluid is leaking from under the plate in the top of the steering gear box, I also found that the brakes became very hard to push. Why did this happen, what needs to be replaced, and how do I prevent it from happening again? How do I fix and prevent from happening again?