CONWAY, SC (WBTW) – Camouflage and baseball hats filled Horry County Council’s chambers Friday morning.
The agriculture business is still recovering from the flood in October. Congressman Tom Rice met with dozens of farmers to discuss federal funding.
“The cotton and inability to harvest peanuts has really devastated the farm economy in South Carolina,” said sixth generation farmer Keith Allen.
A newly introduced bill would hopefully create a South Carolina farm aid fund to assist farmers who have suffered at least a 40% loss as a result of the flood. According to the bill, the state has over 25,000 farms across nearly 5 million acres.
Councilman Johnny Vaught says farms are the backbone of Horry County.
“Time is of the essence, guys. We’ve got to get these folks help as quick as we can,” stated Vaught.
Congressman Tom Rice said there is over $200 million available for agriculture disaster recovery, but its up to the state to ask for money.
“Their very livelihood is on the line,” said Rice. “Family farms that have been with their families for a hundred years are on the line.”
Rice encouraged people to call Governor Nikki Haley’s office in support of federal aid for farmers.
“I don’t know if we’ll all get what we need but farmers are in desperate shape,” said Keith Allen.
The total loss of crops as a result of the flood is estimated at 400 million dollars, according to the bill.
Representative Kevin Hardee says the bill will need to go through the house, the senate and back to the house, before Governor Haley can sign it into action. Hardee told News13 he’s confidant the bill will move quickly through the process.
