The USDA has designated Callaway County and 100 other counties in Missouri as natural disaster areas due to losses caused by drought and excessive heat that occurred July 1 - Aug. 30.
Other area counties falling in this designation include Morgan, Osage, Boone, Cole, Camden, Maries, Miller and Moniteau.
Farmers in eligible counties have eight months from the date of the declaration, Oct. 17, to apply for loans to help cover part of their actual losses.
To help the tornado-stricken people of Dumas and surroundings, donations can be made to the Delta Area Disaster Relief Fund, care of the Delta Area Community Foundation, P.O. Box 894, Dumas, AR, 71639, or through the Arkansas Community Foundation, 700 S. Rock St., Little Rock, AR, 72202.