News Weather
Hailstorm decimates crops southwest
A short-lived and very fierce hailstorm passed over the South Holland Islands on Saturday afternoon, July 20. The hailstones up to 4 centimeters in diameter decimated the crops and completely knocked off the foliage. There seems to be little talk of recovery.
A strip of hail crossed the South Holland islands of Goeree-Overflakkee, Hoeksche Waard and Voorne-Putten on Saturday 20 May. Hail also fell in Rotterdam, which is more to the north, although the damage there was less severe. In addition to damage to the crops, many cars and buildings were also damaged. The hailstones shattered glass and turned cars into poffertjespans.
Crops hailed away
The crops are in very good shape. The leaves of the potatoes and onions are no longer standing. Sugar beet and wheat have also been hit hard. Affected farmers wonder how the crops will recover and talk about tons of damage. The damage appears to be the worst on Goeree-Overflakkee, although reports of significant crop damage are also being received in Goudswaard (in the Hoeksche Waard) and the east of Voorne-Putten.
Those who were lucky in the southwest escaped the hail on Saturday, but did receive significant rain. On the Zeeland island of Tholen, up to 40 millimeters fell on Saturday. Some precipitation also fell in places in West Brabant and in other parts of Zeeland. Elsewhere in the country it was limited to some dripping. On the Crop tour plot with seed onions Last Saturday 13 mm of rain fell in Kortgene.
Notifications are pouring in
On Monday morning, 22 July, insurance company Vereinigte Hagel registered about 35 reports of crop damage. "These come from Midden-Flakkee, part of the Hoeksche Waard and Voorne-Putten, but also the region above Rotterdam. It concerns very serious damage in, among other things, potatoes, onions, grain, sugar beet, peas and fruit."
Schreuder cannot yet say what the financial damage will be. He expects that reports will continue to trickle in today. Appraisers set out as quickly as possible to assess the damage and form a picture. "The loss depends on many factors. Is it a crop that needs to be harvested early or is it late? When the pipes of onions have been completely hailed away and the bulb has been hit, there is also quality damage. Spraying must therefore be carried out as soon as possible. be performed against fungi."
Such local hailstorms do occur every year, the insurer knows. "We have already seen heavy damage locally this spring. At that time it mainly concerned fruit. Orchards were also affected during the current hailstorms. Some participants have insured their entire company, but others choose to insure only their potatoes, for example."
Niels van der Boom
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