Hurricane Ida ravaged Louisiana agriculture this fall. The hurricane brought as much as two feet of rain in some areas, as producers grappled with losses and aftermath.
“My community took a hell of a beating,” Ashly Pitre, president of LaFourche Parish Cattleman’s Association, told “This Week in Louisiana Agriculture.”
Cattle were stranded for days, and producers worked around the clock to get to their livestock and move them to safety. But even then, the Hurricane left its mark, as This Week in Louisiana Agriculture covered it first-hand this year.
“My biggest concern is the water to drink,” Pitre says. “All that grass is rotten. The grass thinks the water stinks, and I’m concerned they might get sick by drinking that nasty water.”
“I lost everything due to, the rain,” said Derrick Jarvis. “It tore the roof off my barn where I keep my feed and hay. I lost everything.”
As producers worked to wade through the aftermath after Hurricane Ida, help for those who felt helpless was on its way.
“We’re here this afternoon at the Louis Mouch Junior Multipurpose Facility in Port Allen, La., and we’re waiting on a delivery of hay for livestock recovery for Hurricane Ida,” Christine Navarre told Louisiana Farm Bureau.
With the warnings of Hurricane Ida’s arrival, she was getting calls from people in Texas saying they were there to help. The orchestrated effort of support was powerful to see.
“This is what farming is all about,” said Jason LeBlanc. “Neighbors helping neighbors. No one farmer has everything they need. They always have to rely on a neighbor to help them — no matter what it is, they always need a neighbor.”
