PORT ANTONIO, Portland:

Tropical Storm Gustav has wreaked damage amounting to approximately $581 million on Portland's agricultural sector.

That figure is part of the Rural Agricultural Development Authrority's (RADA) preliminary estimates, which have already been presented to the Ministry of Agriculture.

A final assessment is expected by the end of this week.

Howard O'Hara, deputy parish manager for RADA in Portland, said about 4,567 farmers have been affected, adding that a breakdown of the losses are: crops, $351 million; livestock, $220 million; land husbandry structures, $10 million; and protective agriculture, $85,000.

According to O'Hara, 20 kilometres of farm roads have also been damaged and a total of 834 hectares of crops were lost during the storm. The manager pointed out that banana and plantain accounted for the majority of the acreage lost.

Greenhouses

Two greenhouses were damaged during the tropical storm.

O'Hara went on to say that RADA would be working with the affected farmers to ensure that their farms were resuscitated as quickly as possible, adding that he was confident that the resilience they displayed in the past would enable them to overcome the current challenges.