President Speaks With Mudslide Victims & Asparagus Harvest

President Speaks With Mudslide Victims & Asparagus Harvest

President Speaks With Mudslide Victims & Asparagus Harvest

I'm Lacy Gray with Washington Ag Today.

During his brief stopover in the rural community of Oso on Tuesday to survey the damage done during the State Route 530 mudslide President Obama spoke with the mudslide victims, letting them know that the federal government would be there to help as long as it takes.

OBAMA: I also had a chance to thank some of the amazing first responders, the firefighters, police officers, search and rescue crews, and members of the Washington National Guard who've been working around the clock to help this community recover from this devastating incident. Governor Inslee, Senator Murray, Senator Cantwell, Congresswoman DelBene, Congressman Larsen and the rest of the elected officials who are here - they've been relentless in making sure that Oso had the resources that it needs.

Earlier this month Governor Inslee requested USDA Ag Secretary Vilsack to designate Snohomish County as a farm disaster area as a result of weather related losses and damage that occurred during the March 22 mudslide.

Mid-Columbia asparagus growers have been busy harvesting the first of their 2014 crop since the end of March and say that so far this year seems to be off to a good start. Although around 500 acres of the roughly 5500 acres dedicated to growing asparagus in the state are nonbearing, Executive Director of the Washington Asparagus Commission, Alan Schreiber, reports that the state's production of asparagus remains steady due to the planting of newer varieties that have higher yields. Roughly 18 million pounds of asparagus are harvested in the state each year.

That's Washington Ag Today.

I'm Lacy Gray on the Ag Information Network.

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