Current conditions for farmers in California are putting farm animals in danger!
The San Bernardino County Fire Department tweeted this video of their team rescuing 17 large farm animals. The horses, cows and goats were stuck in a huge mud pit after record flooding ripped through the farm.
#MUSCOY (Update): Crews have cleared a path to the remaining animals with a skid steer. 3 additional animals have been rescued. San Bernardino County Animal Control is taking the animals to the Devore animal shelter for evaluation by a veterinarian. pic.twitter.com/65pv2lXA1q
— San Bernardino County Fire (@SBCOUNTYFIRE) March 23, 2023
Crews have now cleared a path to the remaining animals with a skid steer and the animals were taken to a shelter for evaluation. Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with these producers.
Flooding is a concern for more than just California. The National Weather Service is expecting some in river basins in the middle of the country this Spring.
USDA Meteorologist, Brad Rippey, shares more on the areas that are at a 50 percent chance of moderate to major flooding.
“We can focus on the upper Midwest where we’ve had snow on the ground since November. If we combine that snow melt with storm systems, meaning additional wet snow or heavy rain, that could exacerbate the flood situation in those areas. The main focus in the Upper Mississippi and parts of the Missouri Basin will be on the James River, primarily draining across eastern South Dakota and then the upper Mississippi Valley, roughly from the Minneapolis-Saint Paul area southward to roughly Saint Louis. The Red River Valley of the north also has been encased in snow and ice, going all the way back to November, and it’s a very flood-prone basin anyway. It drains northward into Canada and so there is the risk that ice jams can aggravate the flood situation there.”
Conditions have taken a dramatic turn on the Mississippi River compared to last summer when barge traffic was halted at one point, leaving producers worried if they were going to get their crop off the farm.
