Our House district and much of western Oklahoma has been hard hit over the last few weeks with wildfires burning homes, barns, crops and even killing animals.
On Feb. 27, we had a large fire near Orlando. There are numerous fires still burning in neighboring Osage County.
The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry reports more than one million acres burned in the Smokehouse Fire in the Texas/Oklahoma panhandles and hundreds of thousands of acres burned in other fires. Damage estimates range in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Our area got some relief last week when rainfall was recorded across most of central and eastern Oklahoma. But crews in the panhandle and northwestern Oklahoma counties were still battling fires at the end of last week. One of my colleagues in the House who represents the Panhandle said they were blessed with rain last year, which allowed their hay and other crops to grow, but now that’s just providing fuel for the fires.
ODAFF says until trees are in full leaf and grasses are fully green, we’ll continue to see fires.
There is some relief help available from various agencies and associations.
The Farm Service Agency is offering a livestock disaster program to producers that have lost animals due to severe weather, including wildfires, drought or floods.
The Livestock Indemnity Program provides benefits to eligible livestock owners or contract growers for livestock deaths in excess of normal mortality caused by eligible loss conditions. More information about the program and how to apply for assistance can be found online at https://www.fsa.usda.gov/state-offices/Oklahoma/index.
The Oklahoma Cattleman’s Foundation also has set up an informational hub on their website where visitors can find hay drop off locations, places to donate, and an updated active fire map. That page is online at https://www.oklahomacattlemensfoundation.com/wildfire-disaster-relief.
The Oklahoma Baptist Disaster Relief is also helping with fire cleanup and recovery.
I’m grateful to these organizations and others that are helping people suffering the effects of these devastating fires. I’m also grateful to hear stories of neighbors helping neighbors. When you grow up in farming and ranching, you know your life will be full of one challenge after another, but you also get to see the very best of humanity. Please remain vigilant and take care of each other.
As always, if you have concerns about bills, or problems I can assist you in solving, please reach out to me at john.pfeiffer@okhouse.gov or call my office at 405-557-7332.
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