Virginia delivers first payments to farmers impacted by Hurricane Helene

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- Virginia is delivering its first payments to farmers and forest landowners impacted by Hurricane Helene, making the state the first to disburse Hurricane Helene relief funds.

On Friday, Jan. 9, Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) announced that farms and forest landowners impacted by Hurricane Helene in late 2024 received the first payments through the Virginia Farm Recovery Block Grant.

According to a release from the governor's office, the first payments are for operations that suffered income loss due to market loss.

Those who suffered other types of losses, such as infrastructure, future economic losses for perennial crops, timber, plasticulture and more, will be dispersed following this first round.

Virginia is also one of six states to receive Helene-related block grant funding from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

 We have been committed to assisting our agricultural and forestry communities in Southwest Virginia since Hurricane Helene swept through. It is a testament to the hard work of this administration and our partnership with the Trump Administration and Secretary Rollins, the USDA, and the state agencies on the ground, that we are delivering the resources Virginians need. We will continue to stand with our agriculture and forestry producers to help Virginia farms and forestry operations rebuild and recover. - Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R)

The governor's office said in a release that the Virginia Farm Recovery Block Grant has $60.9 million to help farmers and timber landowners who are living in eligible Southwest Virginia localities with certain losses not covered by other federal disaster assistance programs.

For more information on the grant, visit the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) website.