Crop Disasters Declared in Montana

Frost, hail and high winds destroy crops in Montana counties

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated four counties in Montana as crop disaster areas due to damages and losses caused by frost, hail and high winds that occurred on July 4, 2015, through July 5, 2015.

Those counties are Blaine, Chouteau, Hill and Liberty.

All counties listed above were designated crop disaster areas on Feb. 17, 2016.

Links to previous disaster listings posted at

• Crop Disasters Declared in the U.S. States of North Carolina and Virginia February 11, 2016

• Crop Disasters Declared in Two U.S. States February 5, 2016
• Extreme Weather Events Destroy Crops in Georgia & the Carolinas January 24, 2016
• Multiple Crop Disasters Declared in Three U.S. States January 9, 2016
• Drought
• Agricultural Disasters Index

Drought Emergency in Papua New Guinea

Deadly drought and frost kill crops, cause severe food shortages in PNG and Guatemala

An urgent call for help has been made from the Papua New Guinea province of Madang which has been badly affected by drought and frost.

Reports say up to 80 percent of the province has been affected, with food gardens destroyed by frost and streams running dry.

At least 1.8 million people have been affected by drought and frost in the Highlands region of PNG. Drought and frost have destroyed crops, and several schools and health facilities have been forced to close due to water shortages, said ACAPS.

“Guina said the National Disaster Centre had not received any reports of people being displaced but unconfirmed reports from Chimbu said that at least 14 people had died. In another area of the province, an unconfirmed report said five people had died,” said a report.

Guatemala

Severe drought in Guatemala has led to a deterioration of food security, with about a million people facing acute food shortages, mainly due to reduced harvest. More than 900,000 people have no food stocks left, according to ACAPS.

 

Crop Disasters Declared in Five States

EXTREME WEATHER & CLIMATIC HAZARDS
DROUGHT
EXTREME RAIN EVENTS (ERE)
HIGH WINDS
HAIL STORM
FROST
CROP DISASTERS
SCENARIOS 900,  888, 444, 178, 177, 111, 064, 03, 02
.

Drought, Frost, ERE and Winds destroy crops in five states

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated a total of 26 counties in five states–Texas, North Carolina, Nebraska, New Mexico and Kansas–as crop disaster areas due to losses caused by drought, frost, extreme rain events and high winds.

Drought Disaster Areas

A total of 9 counties in Texas and one county in New Mexico have been designated as crop disaster areas due to ongoing drought.

• Texas: Crane, Winkler, Andrews, Ector, Pecos, Ward, Crockett, Loving and Upton counties.
• New Mexico: Lea County

Drought & Frost Disaster Areas

11 Counties in Kansas and Nebraska have been declared crop disaster areas due to damages and losses caused by drought and frost that occurred during the period of January 1, 2014, and continuing.

• Kansas: Republic, Washington, Clay, Cloud, Jewell, Marshall and Riley counties.
• Nebraska: Gage, Jefferson, Nuckolls and Thayer counties.

Excessive Rain and Winds Disaster Areas

USDA has designated five counties in North Carolina as crop disaster areas due to damages and losses caused by excessive rain and winds that occurred on July 3, 2014.

• North Carolina: Pamlico, Beaufort, Carteret, Craven and Hyde counties.

Crop Disasters 2014

Beginning January 10, 2014 USDA has declared at least 2,315 separate crop disasters across 35 states. Most of those designations are due to the ongoing drought.

• Those states are Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Utah and Washington, Wyoming. [FIRE-EARTH has documented all of the above listings. See blog content.]

Notes:
i. USDA trigger point for a countywide disaster declaration is 30 percent crop loss on at least one crop.

ii. The total number of counties designated as agricultural disaster areas includes both primary and contiguous disaster areas.

iii. Counties may have been designated crop disaster areas more than once due to multiple disasters.

iv. The U.S. has a total of 3,143 counties and county-equivalents.

v. The disaster designations posted above were approved by USDA on September 10, 2014.

Crop Disaster Links

• Crop Disasters Declared in Six States Posted on September 5, 2014
• Crop Disasters Declared in Three States August 15, 2014
• Crop Disasters Declared in 7 States August 7, 2014
• Federal Disasters
• Drought
• Agricultural Disasters Index

 

Crop Disasters Declared in Six States

EXTREME WEATHER & CLIMATIC EVENTS
DROUGHT
EXCESSIVE RAIN
FREEZE & FROST
CROP DISASTERS
.

Drought, Excessive Rain, Freeze and Frost  Cause Crop Disasters across Dozens of Counties in 6 States

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated 52 Counties across six states—Arizona, California, Oklahoma, Alabama, Florida and Georgia—as crop disaster areas in four separate designations due to various disasters.

Drought Disaster in Arizona and California

USDA has designated five counties in Arizona and three counties in California as Crop Disaster Areas due to ongoing Drought. Those areas are

• Arizona. La Paz, Maricopa, Mohave, Yavapai and Yuma counties.
• California. Imperial, Riverside and San Bernardino counties.

Drought Disaster in Oklahoma

USDA has designated seven counties in Oklahoma as Crop Disaster Areas due to damages and losses caused by the drought.  Those areas are Blaine, Dewey, Caddo, Canadian, Custer, Kingfisher and Major counties.

Crop Disasters from Excessive Rain in Florida

USDA has designated nine counties in Florida as Crop Disaster Areas due to excessive rain that occurred from Jan. 1- March 14, 2014.

Those counties are Alachua, Bradford, Clay, Duval, Flagler, Marion, Putnam, St. Johns  and Volusia.

Crop Disasters Caused by Freeze and Frost

USDA has designated 24 counties in Florida as crop disaster areas due to freeze and frost that occurred from Jan. 7-31, 2014 (and presumably continues. The wording is ambiguous).

Those counties are Alachua, Baker, Bay, Bradford, Broward, Clay, Columbia, Duval, Gilchrist, Glades, Hendry, Holmes, Levy, Marion, Nassau, Okaloosa, Palm Beach, Walton, Martin, Putnam, Okeechobee, Santa Rosa, Union and Washington.

Farmers and ranchers in the following counties in Alabama and Georgia also qualify for natural disaster assistance because their counties are contiguous.

• Alabama. Covington, Escambia and Geneva counties.

• Georgia. Charlton County.

Drought Disasters 2014

Beginning January 10, 2014 USDA has declared at least 1,062 counties across 21 states as crop disaster areas. Most of those designations are due to drought.

• Those states are Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas and Utah.

Notes:
i. USDA trigger point for a countywide disaster declaration is 30 percent crop loss on at least one crop.

ii. The total number of counties designated as agricultural disaster areas includes both primary and contiguous disaster areas.

iii. A number of counties may have been designated crop disaster areas more than once due to multiple disasters.

iv. The U.S. has a total of 3,143 counties and county-equivalents.

v. The disaster designations posted above were approved by USDA on April 2, 2014.

Related Links

• Crop Disasters Declared for 11 U.S. States April 11, 2014
• Crop Disaster Declared for 45 Counties in Texas, Oklahoma April 3, 2014
• Crop Disasters Declared in 5 States as Drought Worsens March 27, 2014
• Crop Disasters Declared for Texas, Oklahoma, Idaho March 21, 2014
• Drought
• Agricultural Disasters Index

State of Emergency Declared in Chile as Frost Destroys Crops

Estimated $1 Billion worth of damage to fruit crops in Chile due late frost

Chile declared a state of emergency on Thursday after a late frost caused widespread damage to fruit crops in the country’s central region, potentially hitting wine production, reports said.

The frost has caused substantial agricultural losses, said Chilean Agricultural Minister in a press release. Exporters have estimated the losses at about US$1billion dollars.

“These frosts are the worst that agriculture has faced in 84 years, impacting the area from Coquimbo to Bio Bio,” said the national agricultural society.

Temperatures have dipped to as low as minus 8 degrees Celsius below zero (18ºF) since the start of spring  in the southern hemisphere, destroying much of the crops in Chile’s central O’Higgins region, a major fruit and wine producing area.

Some growers have lost up to a half of their fruit crops including grapes, peaches, nectarines, kiwis, apricots, almonds and avocados as well as vegetables, which will result in hiring far fewer farmhands.

“Fruit and wine are some of Chile’s largest industries after copper. Fruit exports were worth $4.3 billion in 2012 and wine exports were valued at $1.8 billion, according to government figures. Agriculture Minister Luis Mayol said 30 percent of the fruit that Chile exports has been affected,” said a report.

The frost has damaged up to 61 percent of stone fruit crops, 57 percent of almonds, 48 percent of kiwi crops and 20 percent of table grapes, said the report.

However, most crops have not yet reached full flower and the exact extent of damage is not yet known, according to a major exporter.

The Chilean government says about 50,000 jobs may have been lost in the wine industry, said a report.

Crop Disaster Losses 2013

Disaster Declarations USDA: 3,721 County-level crop disasters in 38 states

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has declared 3,721 county-level agricultural disaster areas across 38 states so far this year.

The crop disasters for year 2013 include losses and damages caused by

• DROUGHT
• FLOOD
• Flash flooding
• Excessive rain, moisture, humidity
• Severe Storms, thunderstorms
• Ground Saturation, Standing Water
• Hail
• Wind, High Winds
• Fire, Wildfire
• Heat, Excessive heat, High temp. (incl. low humidity)
• Winter Storms, Ice Storms, Snow, Blizzard
• Frost, FREEZE
• Hurricanes, Typhoons, Tropical Storms
• Tornadoes
• Volcano
• Mudslides, Debris Flows, Landslides
• Heavy Surf
• Ice Jams
• Insects
• Tidal Surges
• Cold, wet weather
• Cool/Cold, Below-normal Temperatures
• Lightning
• Disease

Notes:
1. USDA trigger point for a countywide disaster declaration is 30 percent crop loss on at least one crop.

2. The total number of counties designated as agricultural disaster areas includes both primary and contiguous disaster areas.

3. The U.S. has a total of 3,143 counties and county-equivalents.

4. A number of counties have been designated crop disaster areas more than once due to multiple disasters.

5. The disaster designations were approved by USDA between January 9 and September 25, 2013.

Agricultural Disaster Declared for Dozens of U.S. Counties

Dozens of counties across 5 States designated as agricultural disaster areas

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated 30 counties across five states as agricultural disaster area due to damages and losses caused by various climatic and extreme weather disasters including the ongoing drought, frost, excessive rain and a tornado. [Several counties received two separate disaster designations.]

Drought Disaster Declared in Oregon

USDA has designated 8 counties in Oregon as agricultural disaster areas due to damages and losses caused by the ongoing drought.

• Oregon counties designated as agricultural disaster areas: Baker, Grant, Crook, Malheur, Umatilla, Wallowa, Harney, Morrow, Union and Wheeler.

• Idaho counties designated as disaster areas because they’re contiguous: Adams and Washington

Drought Disaster Declared in Idaho

Idaho counties designated as disaster agricultural disaster areas: Washington, Adams, Gem and Payette.

Oregon counties designated as disaster areas because they’re contiguous: Baker and Malheur.

Pennsylvania Agricultural Disaster Declaration No. 1

USDA has declared agricultural disaster in Pennsylvania due to frost, excessive rain and a tornado in Erie, Crawford and Warren counties.

The disaster designation is extended to include Chautauqua County in New York and Ashtabula County in Ohio.

Pennsylvania Agricultural Disaster Declaration No. 2

USDA has designated 5 counties in Pennsylvania—Mercer, Butler, Crawford, Lawrence, Venango—as agricultural disaster areas due to damages caused by excessive rain that occurred July 3-13, 2013.

Ohio Agricultural Disaster Declaration

USDA has designated Mahoning and Trumbull counties in Ohio as  agricultural disaster areas because they are contiguous.

For a list of recent Disaster Declarations see entries posted at

• Drought 2013
• Agricultural Disasters Index

Disaster Declared in 94 Counties across 4 States

Extreme Weather Events Cause Agricultural Disasters in  Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Wisconsin

Damage and losses caused by the combined effects of blizzards, excessive snow, excessive heat, excessive rain, high winds, hail, freeze, frost, tornadoes, flooding and lightening that occurred between January 1 and May 11, 2012 prompted USDA to declare disaster in 94 counties across 4 states.

List of the 72 Michigan counties declared Primary Disaster Areas

List of 10 Michigan counties declared Contiguous Disaster Areas

The following 12 counties in Indiana, Ohio and Wisconsin have also been designated as disaster areas because they are contiguous.

• Indiana: Elkhart, Lagrange, La Porte, St. Joseph and Steuben counties.
• Ohio: Fulton, Lucas and Williams counties.
• Wisconsin: Florence, Forest, Marinette and Vilas counties.

March Heat, April Freezes

According to a report by the Central Region Climate Response Team, March Heat, April Freezes, March 2012 “was the warmest March on record for 25 states east of the Rockies, and for 15 other states this March ranked among the ten warmest.”

“During the middle of March maximum temperatures were averaging 40 degrees F above normal. Maximum temperatures regularly reached the low and mid 80s
well north into Wisconsin. Many locations broke daily records by more than 20 degrees F.”

However, April 2012 experienced “at least three significant cold air masses” that crept into the Midwest and caused freezing temperatures.

• Iowa. The freeze caused a 50% destruction of the grape crop, about 90% damage to the apple and fruit tree blossoms and caused significant damage to corn and other crops.

• Illinois. The 2012 apple crop in parts of the state was a total loss due to freeze on April 11.
  • “Sweet corn grower in Vermilion County planted sweet corn on March 19. Plants were up a couple of leaves when back‐to‐back freezes hit (26F and 27F), reducing stand by 5,000 plants per acre.
  • “Sleepy Creek Vineyard in Vermilion County reported earliest budding grapevines had 100 percent damage, and others had 80 percent damage.”

• Michigan. “Thousands of acres of this year’s grape crop have been lost across southwest lower Michigan.
  • “A surveyor for National Grape Cooperative, better known as Welch’s Foods, said he went through hundreds of acres before even finding a live bud.  John Jasper estimates more than 10,000 acres were destroyed April 12, mostly in Berrien, Cass and Van Buren counties.
  • “Many apple, peach, cherry and blueberry orchards have also had substantial losses across northern Indiana and southern Lower Michigan.”

• Wisconsin.  “Cherry growers in Door County, WI, anticipate losses of 70% …”

• Kentucky.  Frost damaged apples, peaches, pears, plums, blackberries, blueberries, strawberries, and grapes to varying degrees across the state.
  • “Wheat harvest began two weeks early in Kentucky due to warm weather, but warm temperatures, and then a brief cold snap, have wreaked havoc on the crop’s yield, which some farmers say has been cut nearly in half. Some farmers are getting 12 bu/acre, compared to a normal of 80 bu/acre,” said the report (PDF file).

Other Global Disasters, Significant Events

Up-to-date weekly average CO₂ at Mauna Loa

• Week of June 24, 2012:     395.33 ppm
• Weekly value from 1 year ago:     393.50 ppm
• Weekly value from 10 years ago:     375.08 ppm

Recent Mauna Loa CO₂

• May 2012:     396.78 ppm
• May 2011:     394.16 ppm
• May 2002:    375.65 ppm
• May 1962:     321.01 ppm
• [1-year increase: 2.62 ppm; 10-year increase: 21.13 ppm; 50-year increase: 75.77 ppm]

Recent Global CO₂

• April 2012:     394.01 ppm (1-year increase: 2.18 ppm)
• April 2011:     391.83 ppm

New Zealand Earthquake

• A Richter magnitude 7.0 quake struck the Cook Strait, west coast of North Island, NZ, about 100km SSW of New Plymouth and 170 km north-west of Wellington (40.00°S, 173.75°E), at a depth of about 230km on Tuesday, July 3 2012 at 10:36UTC.
  • NO tsunami warning was issued by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center.
  • NO report of casualties, as of posting.
  • The quake shook Wellington and was felt as far away as the Bay of Plenty and Christchurch, reports said.

U.S. Heat Wave

US Weather Hazards Map, July 3, 2012. “The heat wave continues for a large portion of the central and eastern U.S., with high temperatures this afternoon forecast to be 10-15 degrees above normal. Combined with high levels of humidity, this will create dangerous heat index values as high as 100-110 degrees for locations such as Minneapolis, Chicago, Kansas City and St. Louis,” said NWS.

The core of the record heat in the central United States is forecast to move gradually to the east this week, however heat alerts and heat indices to 105 degrees will continue. “Much of the eastern half of the country will continue to bake under clear skies, high temperatures and a lack of significant rain,” said NOAA forecasters.

Continued relentless heat through most of the week from the Plains to the Atlantic Coast will dominate the weather events.

Current Warnings Prompted by Unrelenting Heat

Red Flag Warnings, Excessive Heat Warnings and Heat Advisories issued in parts of 26 states from Wyoming to North Carolina.

Heat Advisories

Heat Advisories are in effect until this evening for parts of the Northern Plains, Ohio Valley and the Southeast:

• North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Ohio, West Virginia, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Florida.

Record Daily High Temperatures Nationwide – June 2012

All Time Record High Temperatures Nationwide – June 2012

Mid-Atlantic Derecho

• Death toll has climbed to 22 after the weekend derecho that ravaged the Mid-Atlantic region, with at least 2 million utility customers, or an estimated 7 million people, experiencing power outages amid the continued heat.

Drought Emergency

• Nebraska.  Gov. Heineman has declared a state emergency due to the drought conditions throughout the state of Nebraska.
  • “This declaration is important for continued efforts of state officials to ensure the safety of Nebraskans,” Heineman said. “This action is necessary as dry conditions are presenting an imminent threat to the ability of local governments to respond to drought conditions. Additionally, actions such as haying along the roadsides in Nebraska help with drought conditions.”
  • Nebraska has broken or tied scores of record high temperatures in recent days.
  • Extreme temperatures will continue over central and western Nebraska through at least Friday due to high pressure lingering over the Central Plains, NWS reported.
  • “As excessive heat and dry conditions continue, fire danger is high again today. In addition, isolated thunderstorms are possible this afternoon and evening in north central Nebraska and in the Panhandle. The very dry conditions will continue to make the use of fireworks and even power equipment hazardous.”

Map of U.S. Precipitation (7-day total)

Map of U.S. Precipitation as Percent of Normal (7-day total)

Global Disasters: Links, Forecasts and Background

• The First Wave of World’s Collapsing Cities
• Back to the Primordial Future
• The Fate of Energy Dinosaurs
• Mass Die-offs

• 2010 Disasters [Links to 2010 Disaster Calendar]
• Mega Disasters
• 2011 Disaster Calendar
• 2012 Disaster Calendar

Michigan: A 2010 Disaster Area

Weather Severely Affected Michigan Fruit Production This Year

Michigan, USA. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) declared 47 counties, including the entire West Michigan, as “primary natural disaster areas” this week. The designation follows freezing temperatures and frost, as well as severe storms, extreme rain events, hail, flooding, strong winds, tornadoes, and lightening throughout the year, which destroyed/damaged fruits and crops including apples, blueberries, cherries and vegetables.

Tim Tubbs, who farms with his father in Oceana County, holds an apple with a frost ring on it earlier this year. Source:  Muskegon Chronicle. Image may be subject to copyright.

Based on the October harvest projections report issued by the Michigan Department of Agriculture, fruit production will fall across the board— from apples by nearly a half to peaches down by more than a fifth.

• Apples (49%)
• Tart Cherries (47%)
• Grapes (44%)
• Sweet Cherries (41%)
• Plums (33%)
• Peaches (21%)

Source: Michigan Department of Agriculture: October Fruit Report

Weather Now

Meanwhile, severe weather including 2 major snowstorms hit large parts of the US:

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Related Links:

• 2010 Disaster Calendar [DECEMBER]
• Megadisasters Loom