Ohio
Twenty-two Ohio counties declared natural disaster areas by USDA due to ongoing drought
Record number of Americans die from heat in 2023
Thousands of Americans died from heat in 2023, a record number that researchers believe is actually an undercount.
Ohio’s exceptionally dry and hot summer has drawn the federal government’s attention.
The USDA Farm Service Agency declared 22 Ohio counties natural disaster areas Tuesday due to the state’s ongoing drought, allowing farmers to apply for emergency loans from the federal government.
What Ohio counties are included in natural disaster declaration?
The counties named in the USDA declaration include:
Athens, Belmont, Fairfield, Fayette, Gallia, Guernsey, Harrison, Highland, Hocking, Jackson, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, Morgan, Muskingum, Noble, Perry, Pickaway, Pike, Ross, Vinton and Washington counties.
Those counties have all faced eight or more consecutive weeks of severe drought and some have faced extreme to exceptional droughts, making them natural disaster areas, according to a USDA press release.
For the first time in Ohio history, two counties, Athens and Meigs, face exceptional drought conditions, the most severe level of drought possible, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.
Alongside those 22 “primary” counties, farmers in 18 neighboring counties are eligible to receive emergency loans as well. They are Adams, Brown, Carroll, Champaign, Clark, Clinton, Columbiana, Coshocton, Franklin, Greene, Lawrence, Licking, Meigs, Scioto, Tuscarawas, and Union counties.
How do USDA emergency disaster loans work?
Farmers can borrow up to $500,000 with a 3.75% interest rate to restore or replace essential property, pay production costs for the disaster year, pay essential family living expenses, reorganize the family farming operation or refinance the farm’s non-real estate debts, according to the USDA.
Only farm owners or tenant farmers who intend to continue farming are eligible for the loans.
Eligible farmers can apply on the USDA’s website.
NHart@dispatch.com
@NathanRHart
Ohio
Get tickets to NIL event, Saddle Up, after the Ohio State spring game
We are less than one week away from the annual Ohio State spring game, and there will be plenty to observe and dissect on the field, but there’s a massive event after all of the action that you might want to be a part of.
For the fourth year in a row, the OSU program will host its premier Name, Image and Likeness event, “Saddle Up,” featuring musical artist Darius Rucker. Included with the event will not only be music, but a silent auction, dancing, and the fourth annual “Run For The Scarlet and Gray” horse race with Buckeye celebrity Jockeys.
The event is set to take place at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center at 535 Irving Schottenstein Drive in Columbus. Doors open at 6:00 p.m. ET, and the event is scheduled to last until 11:00 p.m. To get tickets, you can visit go.osu.edu to find out more.
So, if you want to be a part of helping fund the Ohio State football program and also enjoy a night that will no doubt be memorable, consider checking it out.
Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes, and opinion. Follow Phil Harrison on X.
Ohio
Columbus Aviators head coach, ex-Ohio State WR Ted Ginn Jr. charged with DWI
Columbus Aviators head coach and former Ohio State wide receiver Ted Ginn Jr. has been charged with driving while intoxicated in Tarrant County, Texas, according to multiple reports.
Ginn was stopped at 12:58 a.m. April 11 for traffic violations and an officer conducted a DWI investigation, Euless police spokesperson Brenda Alvarado told The Dallas Morning News. He was subsequently arrested, she said.
Ginn Jr. posted a $1,000 bond and was released, according to ABC6.
The Aviators face the Dallas Renegades at noon ET April 12.
“We are aware of an incident involving Head Coach Ted Ginn Jr. over the weekend and are in the process of gathering more information,” UFL president and CEO Russ Brandon said in an statement emailed to The Dispatch.
Brandon stated that Aviators offensive coordinator Todd Haley would assume head coach duties for the April 12 game.
Ginn Jr. was named the coach of the Aviators in December 2025. He had no prior head coaching experience. Before his 14-year-long career in the NFL, Ginn Jr. played receiver for Ohio State from 2004-06. He was the No. 9 pick in the 2007 NFL Draft.
The Dispatch has reached out to the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Department for more information related to Ginn Jr.’s arrest. The Dispatch also reached out to the UFL about Ginn Jr.’s charge.
This story was updated with more details on the arrest.
Ohio
Both directions of I-71 closed due to fiery crash in Delaware County
DELAWARE, Ohio (WCMH) — Both sides of Interstate 71 are closed due to a serious injury crash at US-36/SR-37.
I-71 is closed in both directions at US-36/SR-37 due to a fiery collision Saturday evening at 6:27 p.m. According to Ohio State Highway Patrol, 12 vehicles, including one semi truck, were involved in the collision.
Three people were taken to hospitals from the scene. Their condition was not immediately known.
Carissa Shaw, a driver who witnessed the crash, said that the scene was unbelievable.
“I saw the semi on the other side going northbound. Running into vehicles and coming towards the median right to my left. And immediately flames were shooting into the air. It was one of those moments where it’s like slow motion and you’re thinking, am I seeing what I’m seeing? It was so wild,” Shaw said. “People ran over to a red vehicle that was right to my left, and tried to help, but, the whole driver’s side was mangled.”
The Ohio Department of Transportation is urging drivers to take alternate routes.
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