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USDA issues disaster designations in Illinois

The USDA says three Illinois counties have received disaster designations caused by tornadoes that occurred earlier this year.

USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack issued a disaster declaration for Marshall, Putnam, and Henry counties in response to damage caused by mid-July tornadoes.

Contiguous counties are eligible for the same assistance. Those include: Bureau, Knox, LaSalle, Mercer, Peoria, Rock Island, Stark, Whiteside and Woodford.

Producers in declared counties should contact their local USDA Service Center to confirm eligibility.

A Secretarial natural disaster designation allows the USDA Farm Service Agency to provide emergency loans to producers recovering from natural disasters. Farmers in eligible counties have eight months to apply for the emergency loans.