Zimmatic Blog

The Flood Waters are Receding… Now What?

Apr 2, 2019

The Flood Waters are Receding… Now What?

“It’s devastating. The damage is humbling.”

That’s how Lindsay Regional Manager Brad Dunbar described the current situation in many Midwestern communities affected by recent historic flooding.

“As the water recedes and cleanup begins, we will continue to keep our customers and others in our thoughts and prayers,” Dunbar said. “There’s a lot of work to do to get farming operations up and running again, including getting fields prepared for future planting.”

For center pivots that sat in flood waters, Dunbar said a thorough inspection is need to make sure they’re safe and ready to go when needed.

“In high water situations, there could be damage to critical components – electrical supplies, wells and underground pipe,” he said. “Everything needs to be thoroughly checked before putting the machine back in operation." 

Among the components that should be inspected – gear boxes, center drives and main panel boxes.

“I’ve seen several machines that even had water over the collector ring and tower boxes. Machines that stood in that amount of water could have significant damage – creating a dangerous situation in the irrigation system,” he said. “It’s really important to have an expert complete a thorough inspection of the system before you put it back to work.”

University of Nebraska Extension agents also are providing growers with information needed to get their pivots operational again. Learn more in this article from AgFax - https://bit.ly/2VcjGSP.