The U.S. Department of Agriculture is making Farm Service Agency emergency loans available to farmers in 31 Tennessee counties impacted by February's storms.
The USDA said the loans will be available to farmers recovering from flooding and storm damage to help recover losses, refinance debt and replace essentials like equipment and livestock.
The loans will be available in East Tennessee to Blount, Grainger, Greene, Hamblen, Hamilton, Knox, McMinn, Meigs, Polk, and Rhea counties for excessive rain damage that occurred between May 1, 2018 to Feb. 25, 2019.
Producers in Anderson, Claiborne, Cocke, Cumberland, Hancock, Hawkins, Jefferson, Loudon, Monroe, Roane, Sevier, and Union counties are also eligible to apply for emergency loans for the 2018 crop year.
For the 2019 crop year, this is also extended to the above counties plus Bledsoe, Morgan, and Scott counties.
The deadline to apply is Feb. 25, 2020.
The FSA will review all loans based on the extent of losses, security available and repayment ability.