Virginia receives disaster declarations due to summer derecho

The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) announced today that Albemarle, Nelson and Page counties have received U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) designation as primary disaster areas due to excessive rain, hail, high winds and lightning associated with a derecho that occurred between June 28 and July 3, 2012.

Amherst, Appomattox, Augusta, Buckingham, Fluvanna, Greene, Louisa, Madison, Orange, Rappahannock, Rockbridge, Rockingham, Shenandoah and Warren Counties and the City of Charlottesville received contiguous disaster declarations, meaning they border a county named as a primary disaster area.

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.

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. Local FSA offices can provide affected farmers with more information.

Matthew J. Lohr, VDACS Commissioner, said, “I am grateful that the USDA has declared these three counties as disaster areas eligible for federal assistance, and that other localities have been designated as contiguous disaster areas. These areas were very hard hit by the derecho of late June/early July and any assistance farmers can get will be appreciated.”