A disaster declaration has been declared for farmers in northwest Ohio. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated several counties as disaster areas in October including Defiance, Fulton, Henry, Lucas and Williams counties as well as the continuous counties of Hancock, Ottawa, Paulding, Putnam and Wood. The application deadline is June 16, 2025. According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, these counties have experienced either an extreme drought or severe drought as of Nov. 5 that includes slow winter wheat emergence.