With forecasts predicting a busy hurricane season, North Carolina’s Ag Commissioner says that it is time for farmers to prepare.
Steve Troxler shares some farm emergency template plans to help.
“One thing farmers can do is go to our Emergency Programs Page at the department, and we have a Farm Emergency Plan Template. This is a great resource for farms that cover items that may be forgotten in an emergency, and it’s kind of like a checklist. Look at these things and see where you are, and does your plan include this? Once you do that, then that’s going to help a lot early on in preparedness,” Troxler explains.
The commissioner went on to say that it is important to get everyone on the farm involved in the planning.
“There are a lot of people involved in a farming operation, and you need to train all the workers in an emergency action plan, and beforehand, where’s the high ground? Let’s get stuff to high ground, equipment, animals, post-recover procedures, and a checklist on that too. Making sure everything is accounted for, including employees and animals. Helping everybody help everybody else, so that’s the way we get through it. Neighbors helping neighbors. That’s an assured way to success,” he adds.
