Authorities in the Far East region of Primorye have estimated the agricultural losses resulting from summer floods at more than 2 billion rubles ($60 million), but believe that the harvest will nonetheless satisfy the needs of the local population.
"Farm workers are using every fair weather day, the harvest literally goes on 18 hours a day," regional Deputy Governor Sergei Sidorenko said in a news conference Tuesday.
"There are crops in the fields, they must be collected and delivered to grocery stores," he said, before calling on specialists and regional authorities to do everything in their power to speed up the harvest, Interfax reported.
Harvests of corn, onions, and carrots have been satisfactory, while the yield of potatoes, cabbages, and a number of other crops fell below expectations, Sidorenko said.
This summer's downpours were the heaviest that the region has seen in the last 20 years. They washed out transportation infrastructure, forcing authorities to declare states of emergency in 12 districts of the Primorye region alone.
The Agriculture Ministry has estimated the total agricultural damage from floods in the Far East at 8.2 billion rubles ($247 million), with more than 3.2 billion rubles lost directly by farmers, Vedomosti reported Monday.
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