Record Drought Draws Comparisons To 1930s Dust Bowl

06:02

July 12, 2011

Tyler Gray stirs up a cloud of dust as pulls a tiller across a dry cotton field near Lubbock, Texas, trying to break up hardened ground. (AP)

They're calling it The Great Drought of 2011, affecting 14 states from Florida to Arizona.

Some are comparing it to the 1930s Dust Bowl, and that has farmers scrambling to stem the damage to crops, and many ranchers selling off their herds.

Oklahoma is one of the states suffering a drought and excessive heat-- in Oklahoma City, it's been 100 degrees or higher for the last 13 days.

Pauls Valley Oklahoma rancher and farmer Trey Lam says the heat and drought are unlike anything he's ever seen in his life, and it's crippling his farm.

"Our wheat crop was very small, our corn crop will be at zero," he told Here & Now's Robin Young. "Soybeans are dying, the alfalfa probably produced 20% of what it should have."

Lam says that ranchers are selling off their herds, which means there won't be cows in years to come, potentially driving up beef prices.

Guest:

Trey Lam, farmer and rancher in Pauls Valley, Oklahoma

This segment aired on July 12, 2011.