LIMA — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has included Allen, Auglaize, Hardin, Putnam, Mercer and Van Wert Counties among the 68 Ohio counties designated as primary natural disaster areas as declared Nov. 19.
The designation is due to the combined effects of excessive rain, flooding, excessive heat, landslides, mudslides, high winds, hail and lightning during the period of March 1 through Aug. 25, 2015. Farm operators in these counties are eligible for low-interest emergency EM loans from the Farm Service Agency, provided eligibility requirements are met. Farmers have eight months from the date of declaration to apply for loans to help cover a portion of their losses.
For more information on the program, go to http://disaster.fsa.usda.gov.
