LOWNDES COUNTY, GA — Two years after Hurricane Helene, the state of Georgia is offering more than $531 million to cover agricultural losses. Farmers have until April 27 to apply for the aid.
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Local farmers are finally seeing relief after Hurricane Helene.
The state is stepping in to make more than $531 million in relief funding available to Georgia farmers.
The money will cover losses not already included in federal USDA programs, including everything from timber and livestock to crops like pecans and blueberries.
But with only six weeks to apply, the pressure is on for farmers trying to gather paperwork and prove their losses while still working their land.
The deadline to apply for the aid is April 27.
Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper says the goal is to help farmers get back on their feet. While the funding will not cover every dollar of the $6 billion lost in the region, leaders say it will keep the industry on track.
"We'll be getting our fair share. So, we've been seeing a lot of influx and a lot of funds," Harper said.
From damaged crops to torn-up land, Helene left a lasting mark on South Georgia agriculture. ABC 27 saw that firsthand with our coverage on Hurricane Helene's impact on agriculture. At Farmer Brown's Farmers Market, owner Tim Holton says recovery has been slow and costly.
"Gas prices and Mother Nature, that plays a part in the market. That's always the impact, and most farmers, I feel it this way we are," Holton said.
In Ray City, farmers are still working to rebuild what was lost. Buck Polk of Shiloh Farms says the damage didn't just hit once, it's ongoing.
"You asked, you know, what does it feel like? The immediate feelings you want to wish that you were a shoe salesman or something different, but not, not be a pecan farmer that day. But that's what you are. And so it's a great exercise in faith. And so that's ultimately how I get through it: just trust God and pray, and you work," Paulk said.
The Georgia Department of Agriculture says farmers, producers, and growers in the following counties (including, but not limited to) may apply for the aid:
Appling, Atkinson, Bacon, Baker, Baldwin, Ben Hill, Berrien, Bibb, Bleckley, Brantley, Brooks, Bryan, Bulloch, Burke, Camden, Candler, Charlton, Chatham, Chattahoochee, Clinch, Coffee, Colquitt, Columbia, Cook, Crisp, Decatur, Dodge, Dooly, Dougherty, Echols, Effingham, Elbert, Emanuel, Evans, Glascock, Glynn, Grady, Hancock, Houston, Irwin, Jeff Davis, Jefferson, Jenkins, Johnson, Jones, Lanier, Laurens, Lee, Liberty, Lincoln, Long, Lowndes, Marion, McDuffie, McIntosh, Miller, Mitchell, Montgomery, Oglethorpe, Pierce, Pulaski, Quitman, Rabun, Randolph, Richmond, Screven, Seminole, Stewart, Sumter, Taliaferro, Tattnall, Telfair, Terrell, Thomas, Tift, Toombs, Treutlen, Turner, Twiggs, Ware, Warren, Washington, Wayne, Webster, Wheeler, Wilcox, Wilkes, Wilkinson, and Worth.
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