Livestock Supply Points for Wildfire Donations set Closing Dates

The truckloads of hay have slowed, and producers affected by wildfires are beginning to get some perspective on the damage done and the path forward, so Livestock Supply Points in three counties will begin winding down, according to Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service officials. Danny Nusser, AgriLife Extension regional program leader in Amarillo, said each county has a plan to bring the efforts of volunteers and donors to a close at the Livestock Supply Points opened March 7 in response to wildfires that burned 480,000 acres across the Texas Panhandle. “The purpose of the Livestock Supply Point is to give producers affected by the fires a window of time to assess their situation and their cattle’s needs and be able to feed their cattle for a time before they have to make a decision on what to do with them,” Nusser said. “Typically that time is three to four weeks to provide feed and hay for those animals. In the coming weeks, we will be bringing those to an end.” The Livestock Supply Points are located at the Clyde Carruth Pavilion, 301 Bull Barn Drive in Pampa; Canadian AH&N Ranch Supply, 100 Hackberry Trail in Canadian; and Lipscomb County Show Facility, 202 W. Main St. in Lipscomb.

Nusser said the AgriLife Extension agents now will begin shifting into recovery mode and schedule meetings in the near future to advise producers on long-term recovery. Mike Jeffcoat, AgriLife Extension agent in Gray County and coordinator of the supply point in Pampa, said they will continue to run from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. through the week and will suspend daily operations March 24. After that, supplies will be loaded by appointment only by calling 806-669-8033. Jeffcoat said donations in Pampa included about 4,000 round bales, 785 large square bales and 1,300 small squares of hay, as well as about 700 rolls of wire and 5,000 t-posts, 130 tons of cubes and 31,450 pounds of different kinds of animal feed. About one-third of the hay has been delivered and half of the feed, he said. Some was sent to help neighboring ranches as far west as Amarillo, as far east as Shamrock and as far north as Laverne, Oklahoma. “We had between 15 and 40 volunteers a day,” he said. “Those volunteers are who made this thing work. We so appreciate their time and efforts.”...more