Thunderstorms and torrential downpours triggered historic and catastrophic flash and river flooding across Central and East Central Indiana, and a derecho back on August 11 knocked out power to over 300,000 customers statewide with isolated tornado and wind damage destroying farm structures.
“It’s been very devastating in a lot of parts of the state,” says Steve Brown, State Executive Director of the Indiana Farm Service Agency. “We’ve had a lot of damage—physical loss and crop loss.”
Brown spoke with Hoosier Ag Today at the State Fair Tuesday. He encourages farmers to visit their local FSA office and report damage of any kind.
“Right now, we’re still evaluating. The crop loss is hard to tell right now. So, counties are still evaluating and making assessments, and we hope by the middle of next week we will have all of our reports.”
President Trump approved a Presidential Emergency Declaration for Indiana, unlocking crucial federal resources to support response and recovery operations across 54 impacted counties. But more still has to happen for USDA.
“The president has made a declaration of loss in the state, but we need a major designation before any of our loan programs or anything would be activated. I guess the governor’s office is putting a request together for the president, so we’ll wait and see how that goes. But we’re going to continue to do our due diligence.”
The reports they’re collecting will help determine what kind of assistance might be sought from Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins or the president.
Brown explains some of the programs they offer that could be unlocked.
“We’ve got some livestock loss programs. We’ve heard of some cows that have drowned during the floods. We’ve heard of potential honeybee loss through floods. We also have some emergency loan programs that if we get this disaster declaration from the Secretary or the President, it will allow us to activate those emergency loan programs as well.”
Farmers are urged to document everything—take clear, timestamped photographs and videos of flooded fields, washed-out access roads, structural damages to barns and bins, and any livestock losses. Please prioritize safety and contact your local FSA office once you have that documentation.
