Five NW Ohio counties declared a primary natural disaster area due to drought.

This Secretarial natural disaster designation allows the United States Department of Agriculture
(USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) to extend much-needed emergency credit to farm operators in
primary counties and contiguous counties through FSA emergency loan assistance. Emergency loans
can be used to meet various recovery needs including the replacement of essential items such as
equipment or livestock, reorganization of a farming operation, or to refinance certain debts. FSA will
review the loans based on the extent of losses, security available, and repayment ability. The deadline
for producers in designated primary and contiguous counties to apply for loans is June 16, 2025.
According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, these counties suffered from a drought intensity value during
the growing season of 1) D2 Drought-Severe for eight or more consecutive weeks or 2) D3 Drought-
Extreme or D4 Drought-Exceptional.

Primary counties eligible:
Ohio – Defiance, Fulton, Henry, Lucas and Williams Counties.

Contiguous counties also eligible :
Ohio – Hancock, Ottawa, Paulding, Putnam and Wood Counties.
Indiana – Allen, DeKalb and Steuben Counties.
Michigan – Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe Counties.

On farmers.gov, the Disaster Assistance Discovery Tool, Disaster Assistance-at-a-Glance fact sheet,
and Loan Assistance Tool can help you determine program or loan options. To file a Notice of Loss or
to ask questions about available programs, contact your local USDA Service Center.