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Congressman Tom Reed announced Wednesday that Yates County farmers received nearly $284,000 in Disaster Relief administered by the USDA through the Emergency Conservation Program.

"Last May I saw firsthand the damage done by widespread flooding in Penn Yan and Yates County," Reed says.  "I heard from homeowners, businesses and farmers about the amount of repairs they would need to their properties. I told them then that I would work tirelessly to get them the assistance they needed to get back up and running."

Directly following the disastrous flooding in Yates County last May, Congressman Reed reached out to the USDA to declare Yates County a disaster area and to assist in the administration of emergency funding to assist our local farmers.


"I am pleased to see that the funding has come through for this critical step in aiding the farmers of Yates County to recover from the terrible flood of May 14 - 16th, 2014," says Yates County Soil & Water Conservation District's Tom Eskildsen.  "The flood washed away thousands of tons of productive farmland in a matter of hours leaving large areas of washouts and deposited debris.  Many locations were left with no soil to re-build cropland and vineyards from.  Farmers in affected areas have spent countless hours cleaning storm debris, filling in washouts, and repairing fences damaged during the storm."

Since that time, Reed and his staff have worked with the State and Bath USDA offices and the Yates Soil Water Conservation District office to ensure the program was funded and that farmland value is being estimated correctly based on the type of crop.

"I am elated that much needed disaster aid has been given to our hardworking farmers in Yates county," Reed says. "It is only fair that they receive relief from the devastating flood of 2014. Since my visit last year, my staff and I have worked tirelessly to ensure that the USDA had all the relevant information in order to get our farmers the aid they needed. I care for those affected by this flood and will continue to work with and listen to the community to ensure that all those affected get the assistance they need."

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