WASHINGTON, August 24, 2020 -
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reminds communities,
farmers and ranchers, families and small businesses in the path of
Tropical Storms Marco and Laura that USDA has programs that provide
assistance in the wake of disasters. USDA staff in the regional,
state and county offices stand ready and are eager to help.
In a continuing effort to serve the American people,
USDA partnered with FEMA and other disaster-focused organizations
and created the Disaster Resource Center.
This central source of information utilizes a searchable knowledge
base of disaster-related resources powered by agents with subject
matter expertise. The Disaster Resource Center website and web tool
now provide an easy access point to find USDA disaster information
and assistance.
USDA also developed a disaster assistance
discovery tool specifically targeted to rural and
agricultural issues. The tool walks producers through five
questions that generate personalized results identifying which USDA
disaster assistance programs can help them recover from a natural
disaster.
USDA also encourages residents and small businesses
in impact zones to contact USDA offices which meet their individual
needs.
Severe weather forecasts often present the
possibility of power outages that could compromise the safety of
stored food. USDA encourages those in the path of the storms to take
the following precautions:
- Place
appliance thermometers in both the refrigerator and the
freezer to ensure temperatures remain food safe during a power
outage. Safe temperatures are 40°F or below in the
refrigerator, 0°F or below in the freezer.
- Freeze
water in small plastic storage bags or containers prior to a
storm. These containers are small enough to fit around the
food in the refrigerator and freezer to help keep food cold.
- Freeze
refrigerated items, such as leftovers, milk and fresh meat and
poultry that you may not need immediately—this helps keep them
at a safe temperature longer.
- Consider
getting 50 pounds of dry or block ice if a lengthy power
outage is possible. This amount of ice should keep a
fully-stocked 18-cubic-feet freezer cold for two days
- Group
foods together in the freezer—this ‘igloo’ effect helps the
food stay cold longer.
- Keep
a few days’ worth of ready-to-eat foods that do not require
cooking or cooling.
Owners of meat and poultry producing businesses who
have questions or concerns may contact the FSIS Small Plant Help
Desk by phone at 1-877-FSIS-HELP (1-877-374-7435), by email at infosource@fsis.usda.gov,
or 24/7 online at www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/regulatory-compliance/svsp/sphelpdesk.
USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
(APHIS) is urging everyone in the potential path of the hurricane
to prepare now – not just for yourselves, but also for your pets
and your livestock.
Protecting livestock during a
disaster:
- Plan
for evacuation – know how you will evacuate and where you will
go. If it is not feasible to evacuate your livestock, be sure
to provide adequate food and water that will last them until
you can return, and a strong shelter.
- If
you are planning to move livestock out of state, make sure to
contact the State Veterinarian’s Office in the receiving state
before you move any animals. You also may contact APHIS
Veterinary Services state offices for information and
assistance about protecting and moving livestock.
- Listen
to emergency officials – evacuate if asked to do so.
When major disasters strike, USDA has an emergency loan program
that provides eligible farmers low-interest loans to help them
recover from production and physical losses. USDA’s emergency loan
program is triggered when a natural disaster is designated by the
Secretary of Agriculture or a natural disaster or emergency is
declared by the President under the Stafford Act. USDA also offers
additional programs tailored to the needs of specific agricultural
sectors to help producers weather the financial impacts of major
disasters and rebuild their operations.
Helping producers weather
financial impacts of disasters:
Livestock owners and contract growers who experience
above normal livestock deaths due to specific weather events, as
well as to disease or animal attacks, may qualify for assistance
under USDA’s Livestock Indemnity
Program.
Livestock, honeybee and
farm-raised fish producers whose mechanically harvested or
purchased livestock feed was physically damaged or destroyed; or
who lost grazing acres or beehives due to an extreme weather event
may qualify for assistance. Producers of non-insurable crops who
suffer crop losses, lower yields or are prevented from planting
agricultural commodities may be eligible for assistance under USDA's Noninsured Crop
Disaster Assistance Program if
the losses were due to natural disasters and if a policy is in
place for the current crop year.
Helping operations recover after
disasters:
USDA also can provide financial resources through
its Environmental Quality Incentives
Program to help with immediate needs and long-term support
to help recover from natural disasters and conserve water
resources. Assistance may also be available for emergency animal
morality disposal from natural disasters and other causes.
Farmers and ranchers needing to rehabilitate
farmland damaged by natural disasters can apply for assistance
through USDA’s Emergency Conservation
Program. USDA also has assistance available for eligible
private forest landowners who need to restore forestland damaged by
natural disasters through the Emergency Forest Restoration
Program (PDF, 257 KB). For declared natural disasters that
lead to imminent threats to life and property, the USDA Natural
Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) can assist local government
sponsors with the cost of implementing recovery efforts like debris
removal and streambank stabilization to address natural resource
concerns and hazards through the Emergency Watershed
Protection Program.
Orchardists and nursery tree growers may be eligible
for assistance through USDA’s Tree Assistance
Program to help replant or rehabilitate eligible trees,
bushes and vines damaged by natural disasters.
Producers with insurance coverage administered
Federal crop insurance program should contact their crop insurance
agent for issues regarding filing claims. Those who purchased crop
insurance will be paid for covered losses. Producers should report
crop damage within 72 hours of damage discovery and follow up in
writing within 15 days. The Approved Insurance Providers
(AIP), loss adjusters and agents are experienced and
well trained in handling these types of events. As part of its
commitment to delivering excellent customer service, RMA is working
closely with AIPs that sell and service crop insurance policies to
ensure enough loss adjusters will be available to process claims in
the affected areas as quickly as possible.
USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA), Risk Management
Agency (RMA) and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)
remind producers to gather important crop and livestock records and
keep them in a safe place as they will likely be needed when
inquiring about disaster assistance program eligibility and
reporting loss or damage to local USDA Service Centers. More disaster
recovery information is available at farmers.gov/recover.
Helping individuals recover after
disasters:
In the aftermath of a disaster, USDA’s Food and Nutrition
Service (FNS) works with state, local and nongovernmental
organizations to provide emergency nutrition
assistance – including food packages and
infant formula – to households, shelters and mass feeding sites
serving people in need. Upon request from states, the agency also
provides emergency flexibilities in the administration of its
nutrition assistance programs and, under certain circumstances,
works with local authorities to provide Disaster Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance Program (D-SNAP) benefits. Once the disaster
recovery efforts begin, emergency nutrition assistance and
flexibilities requested by states and approved by FNS will be
posted to the FNS Disaster Assistance
website.
USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture
provides support for disaster education through the Extension Disaster Education
Network (EDEN). EDEN is a collaborative,
multi-state effort with land-grant universities and Cooperative
Extension Services across the country, using research-based
education and resources to improve the delivery of services to
citizens affected by disasters. EDEN's goal is to improve the
nation's ability to mitigate, prepare for, prevent, respond to and
recover from disasters. EDEN equips county-based Extension
educators to share research-based resources in local disaster
management and recovery efforts. The EDEN website offers a
searchable database of Extension professionals, resources, member
universities, disaster agency websites and education materials to
help people deal with a wide range of hazards, and also provides
food and agricultural defense educational resources. Resources for
disaster feeding partners as well as available FNS disaster
nutrition assistance can be found on the FNS Disaster Assistance
website.
Visit USDA's disaster resources
website to learn more about USDA disaster preparedness and
response. For more information on USDA disaster assistance
programs, please contact your local USDA Service Center. To find
your local USDA Service Center go to farmers.gov/service-center-locator.
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