U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack has designated much of Eastern North Carolina as a disaster area after excessive rain and flooding in recent months caused significant crop losses. The designation allows eligible farmers to be considered for Farm Service Agency emergency loans and the Supplemental Revenue Assistance Payments Program.
Thirteen North Carolina counties were named primary natural disaster areas: Camden, Carteret, Craven, Currituck, Durham, Granville, Green, New Hanover, Onslow, Orange, Pasquotank, Pender and Washington counties.
In addition, 26 counties were named contiguous natural disaster areas: Alamance, Beaufort, Bertie, Bladen, Brunswick, Caswell, Chatham, Columbus, Dare, Duplin, Franklin, Gates, Hyde, Jones, Lenoir, Martin, Pamlico, Perquimans, Person, Pitt, Sampson, Tyrrell, Vance, Wake, Wayne and Wilson counties.
Gov. Bev Perdue requested the disaster declaration on Feb. 18 after Loss Assessment Reports from the 13 primary counties reflected a 30 percent or greater loss of at least one major crop. In particular, soybean, cotton and wheat crops have been affected.
FSA will consider each application on its own merit by taking into account the extent of losses, security available and repayment ability. Affected farmers can contact their local FSA office for more information.
– Information from Governor’s Office