Texas Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples traveled to Southeast Texas on Wednesday, September 17 to meet with the men and women on the ground who are working tirelessly assisting in the massive hurricane recovery effort. After sitting down and hearing the needs of officials in Beaumont and Jefferson County, Commissioner Staples surveyed Jefferson and Chambers counties by air.
Don Gohmert from the Natural Resources Conservation Service and Commissioner Staples saw an extremely broad path of massive destruction – from entire communities wiped away to highways and bridges either destroyed or covered with massive barges. Acres and acres of cropland and pastures had been swallowed by the salty surge, estimated at up to ten miles inland.
From the air, live cattle were wading through belly deep-water miles from high ground. Some cattle were huddled together on top of levies searching for a path back home but finding no safe place to turn.
The fences, barns and corrals that used to dot this region are now gone, cleared away by the massive wall of water and wind.
A long road of recovery is still ahead for Southeast Texas. You can help by calling AgriLife Extension Service at (979) 845-2604 or you can donate to AgriLife's "No Fences" Hurricane Ike Horse and Cattle Relief fund online. Monetary donations are needed to defray transportation costs associate with the rescue of horses and cattle, as well as the purchase of goods like feed and water troughs.
You can see more of the full-sized photos of the tour in a slideshow HERE. Or you can click on the photo below to start an embedded slideshow.
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