Hail "hits" agricultural crops in Orman i Maliqi/ Farmers: Wheat production has been severely damaged

2026-07-01 14:38:00, Qyteti im CNA

A strong storm yesterday afternoon with intense rain and hail has left behind significant damage to the agricultural fields of the Orman village in the Maliq Municipality. Farmers say that the atmospheric phenomenon, which lasted about half an hour, has damaged a large part of the crops, mainly wheat, but also onions, barley and alfalfa.

In the planted plots, the picture is the same. Plants have fallen to the ground, while farmers say that a significant part of the expected production has been lost. For them, this is one of the strongest storms in recent years, with direct consequences on the economy of families who live from agriculture.

" There were unprecedented rainfalls, it was a storm. Who do they call a storm? I was here and I couldn't get into the house. The boy was in the plot when he called me. It lasted over 25-30 minutes. Unprecedented rain and hail. It damaged the wheat a lot. The onion cracked, the entire onion leaf. We are afraid that rot will come in now and damage it a lot ," said a resident.

Farmers indicate that the damages are extensive due to the considerable areas they have planted. They are requesting the intervention of institutions to assess the damages and to see if they can provide financial support.

"We have a large area, we have a lot of damage, but we have nowhere to complain, who can we complain to? No one takes care of us. It has happened to me before, a few years ago, they registered us with a report, but no one helped us. Specialists should determine the percentage of damage, because it depends on the variety ," said the farmer.

One of the main concerns of farmers is wheat, which is in the pre-harvest stage. According to them, hail has knocked down the ears of corn and significantly reduced expectations for production.

" Hail fell and halved it, the wheat was gone, it's gone. Even the alfalfa that was harvested almost dry, it's gone too. What kind of crop will we get? It fell to the ground, it's ready to be planted for next year. All those who have wheat, especially those who have many hectares , are asking for support," said one of the farmers.

According to residents, this is not the first time the area has faced damage from extreme weather phenomena, but this year the situation is more problematic. They say that heavy rainfall has occurred twice within a short period.

"It lasted almost 30 minutes. It caused more damage to the wheat. Wheat and vegetables. It has never been like this year. It has happened other times, but not much. It has fallen here twice. It fell 10 days ago and again last night ," said the farmer.

For some farmers, the losses are significant and they say that of the production they expected to receive this season, only a small portion may remain.

" I also told one of my cousins: harvest the wheat that is there and let it sprout for the weather. We don't get any production this year. He might get 10%. He would get 50-60 quintals, he would get 5 quintals of wheat. That's all he'll get, he won't get more ," said the farmer.

Other agricultural crops have not been spared from damage either. Farmers say that the hail has affected barley, alfalfa and other crops planted in the area.

" It destroyed all the fields, knocked everything down, even the barley. My wheat and barley were damaged. I had 13 dunyams of wheat and 7 and a half dunyams of barley. Great damage was done. What can you take? Nothing, just for the livestock ," the farmer declares.

The residents of Orman are demanding that local institutions go out into the field and verify the situation. They say that many families in the village depend on agricultural production and that a bad year could directly affect their income.

" Wheat has fallen by almost 50-60% per acre. There are many who have planted potatoes and their other crops have also been damaged. There are many farmers who have been damaged. From the conversations we have had with residents today, the damage is quite large ," said another farmer.

In an area where agriculture is the main source of income, Orman farmers say the consequences of the storm will be felt throughout the season. They are now awaiting an official assessment of the damage and a response from institutions to cope with the losses caused by the bad weather./CNA