State agencies remain at the ready to help Georgia farmers with crops lost from Tropical Storm Debby.

The National Weather Service recorded winds as high as 55 miles per hour and more than a foot of rain in some areas of Georgia.

Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper warned there had already been reports of extensive damage across the state.

“We have been getting reports of damage from across southeast and south central Georgia. Waist-high flooding in certain areas, farms and processing operations without power, tobacco blown over, pecans blown to the ground, corn blown over, and a poultry operation that has lost about 5,000 birds. The severe and potentially life-threatening flooding expected over the coming days creates additional concerns of chemical or microbial contamination of crops like peanuts and watermelons, and it will be some time before we can understand the full extent of the damage caused by Debby,” Harper said in a statement. “Our state agricultural response team, Georgia Food and Feed Rapid Response Team and companion animal search and rescue teams are on standby and are ready to assist farmers, producers, and GDA-regulated businesses in the impacted areas.”

Pam Knox with the University of Georgia’s College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences said the crops most at risk are melons and corn.

“Any ripe crops on the ground like melons will have to be discarded because of contamination. If it’s close enough to the ground to be hit by flood waters, it’s considered a loss,” said Knox.

She sent an email to members of the UGA Agriculture extension Office urging them to be careful of flooded areas as they work to help farmers after Tropical Storm Debby moves out of parts of central and south Georgia.

Source - https://www.wctv.tv