Southeast Texas
March 2009

The saltwater from the surge of Hurricane Ike inundated over half a million acres of land in Southeast Texas, making most of it unusable for cattle.

The cattle industry estimates over $92 million in business losses from the storm.


Bill White, Agricultural Worker
All the folks that were in a storm surge area basically lost all their feed had no water for the cattle, the biggest part of the ranchers liquidated or cattle they sold, sold out just because they didn't have any where to go with them.
I've been in the business for a long time I spent a life time raising this set of cattle and I just didn't want to liquidated, to go out and try to buy cattle and bring them back to this country that I ranch in, because a lot of where I ranch in is in the coast in marsh type country. It would take a cow several years to get acclimatize to get use to the heat and humidity.

Vanessa Brower, FEMA Community Recovery
Working with the committee regarding the agricultural issues is challenging for the farmers, they lost their fencing, they got salt in their fields, cattle have been relocated, they are leasing property.

Bill White, Agricultural Worker
We ranch basically from sea level to up to eight foot elevation, so anytime there is a storm out there in the gulf we are always watching it, and we make preparations and get the cattle gathered up. I've been doing this for over 30 years 33, 34 years actually running this ranch, I have probably gathered this cattle 40 times maybe more than that. I spent an excess of one hundred thousand dollars just in freight bills alone moving this cattle to other parts of the state. Extra grazing expenses, migration expenses are running about $15 a head a month, if I had the same cattle here grazing them here at home it would probably cost me four or five dollars a head a month.

Vanessa Brower, FEMA Community Recovery
Long term community recovery is assisting them with identifying funding sources and other types of technical assistance and resources to help them get their fencing back in, get their pastures leached and back in to having their live stock on their on land rather than borrowed or leased land.


Bill White, Agricultural Worker
I think within three years, you know most all of this country will be, will be recovered. I mean there probably be isolated areas that won't be fully recover but for the most part.

During meetings facilitated by FEMA's Long-Term recovery program, the idea of a revolving loan fund was developed for ranchers to use to irrigate their land, make repairs and bring their cattle home, while they wait for further financing from the Department of Agriculture.

For more information please visit www.fema.gov