Giant Hail Leaves Its Mark On Benton
By MAX Showalter
OXFORD – John Fields, the emergency management agency director, in Benton County, waited Tuesday for representatives of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to come to take stock of the damage of Hurricane Monday '.
But Fields had already made an assessment and what he saw wasn 't encouraging.
About 75 homes were damaged in Oxford, Fields said.
Hailstones, buildings about as big as 41 / 2 inches in diameter, pelted trees, flattened crops and pummeled and vehicles.
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"Even more impressive than any of the extensive damage was the catastrophic wind damage caused by giant hail to crops in the region," the office of the Chicago National Weather Service said in a prepared statement on its website.
Fields agreed.
"I think that was 10000-15000 acres of crops destroyed by hail. We had several golf ball-sized hail," Fields said. "West of Oxford with Boswell, it was getting close and kept getting high."
Evidence hail was strong in Oxford Tuesday, with large patches of green leaves, possibly hit by trees from hail covering the ground, and many roofs.
After the tour of Oxford and Boswell areas Tuesday and taking pictures, Chuck Westfall, Benton County Farm Service Agency director, said some of the crops affected by the hail attack Monday "may be able to recover, although not completely.
"I don 't know if me optimistic, but given a few days with no rain and fair weather, many of these crops could bounce back. Sa" good area along (USA) 52, where crops are depressed. Easily, a couple of square miles are flat. The performance will be affected, but may be able to harvest some of them. "
Westfall said producers may have time to reopen the crops have been damaged or destroyed in this area.
"This is between the farmer and better information from the seed dealer and suppliers. We give them the report failed areas. They provide an opportunity … to regain some of their losses. But is not something that will happen soon . It comes through the security of their crops. "
The USDA 's Farm Service Agency has failed to present a report to the area in July 1915.
Contributing: Curt Slyder / clyder@jconline.com
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