2012 PRESS RELEASES
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February 9, 2012
FIVE VIRGINIA LOCALITIES RECEIVE PRIMARY DISASTER DECLARATION
~ Craig, Frederick, Page and Surry Counties receive designation due to excessive heat and drought; Prince George designated because of Hurricane Irene ~
Contact: Elaine J. Lidholm, 804.786.7686
The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) announced today that five Virginia localities have received U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) designation as a primary disaster area due to excessive heat and drought that occurred between May 1 and September 30, 2011. The localities are the Counties of Craig, Frederick, Page and Surry. Prince George County received designation as a primary disaster area due to damage from Hurricane Irene in August of 2011.
The following areas received contiguous disaster declarations, meaning they border a locality named as a primary disaster area: the Counties of Alleghany, Botetourt, Charles City, Chesterfield, Clarke, Dinwiddie, Giles, Greene, Isle of Wight, James City, Madison, Montgomery, Rappahannock, Roanoke, Rockingham, Shenandoah, Southampton, Sussex and Warren and the Cities of Colonial Heights, Hopewell, Newport News, Petersburg and Winchester.
Matthew J. Lohr, VDACS Commissioner, said, “I am grateful that the USDA has declared these areas eligible for federal assistance, and that other localities have been designated as contiguous disaster areas. These areas were very hard hit by drought, heat and a hurricane and any assistance farmers can get will be appreciated.”
A federal Secretarial disaster designation makes farm operators in both primary and contiguous counties eligible to be considered for assistance from the federal Farm Service Agency (FSA), provided eligibility requirements are met. This assistance includes FSA emergency loans and the Supplemental Revenue Assistance Payments Program known as SURE.
Farmers in eligible counties have eight months from the date of a Secretarial disaster declaration to apply for emergency loan assistance. FSA will consider each emergency loan application on its own merits, taking into account the extent of production losses, security available and repayment ability. SURE Program applications for 2011 crop losses will be accepted in 2012 when the 2011 farm revenue data required by law become available. Local FSA offices can provide farmers with additional information.