"First a flood in September and now this hail storm. The truth is that this is becoming a very difficult campaign. The weather is not giving us any rest," says Miguel López, manager of the production and marketing company Costa de Níjar.
The firm's producer-partners who escaped the floods have now been affected by storm Gloria, which has mainly hit the area of Níjar in the form of hail. Some growers will lose up to 75% of the production. "Although the production itself is not insured, at least our partners have insurance for the structures of their greenhouses," he said.
Shocking video of the collapse of a greenhouse filmed by an agricultural producer
“We have lost 50% of our organic eggplant (the most affected product), although we have also lost a good part of our cherry tomato and zucchini production. Cucumbers are also planted in this area," says Miguel López.
The mayor of Níjar, Esperanza Pérez, has said that there is still no final assessment of the damage caused by the hail and heavy rainfall. The first estimates point to about 150 farms, mainly collapsed greenhouses.
The commission of Natural Disasters has already been set up and the first data has already been evaluated. There is talk of about 1,000 hectares affected in Níjar, which is more than 30% of the municipality's acreage.
The greenhouses located in the areas affected by the storm have accumulated a great amount of water. It is feared that, in the next few days, this excess moisture will possibly affect the crops due to the impact of fungal diseases.
Carmen Crespo, Councilor of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Sustainable Development of the Government of Andalusia, has visited the area that was most severely hit by the hailstorm. A plenary session was convened and two days of official mourning will be declared for the death of a local of this town.