Derecho Storm - Heartland Co-op Update

Statement 9/9/2020

 

 

Dear Heartland Co-op Patrons & Employees,

During the Derecho storm on Monday August 10th, Heartland Co-op sustained significant damage to facilities throughout several counties in central and eastern Iowa.  Thankfully, there were no serious injuries and our Heartland Team is safe.  To date, Heartland has incurred damage to 81 grain bins at over 25 different locations totaling almost 16 million bushels worth of storage.  Legs, dryers, conveyors, fertilizer buildings, and other structures were also damaged.  The past few weeks have been dedicated to assessing the damage and developing a short-term strategy to get through the upcoming harvest and formulating a long-term plan for rebuilding. 

To facilitate a fast approaching, early maturing harvest, we have prioritized the following locations to rebuild as quickly as possible: Minburn, Slater, Elberon, Pickering, Malcom, Reinbeck, and Traer.  These facilities are strategically spaced and the easiest to put back together in such a short period.  They also fit well in Heartland’s long term growth strategy.

Locations at Rippey, Luther, Alleman, Enterprise, Cambridge, Guernsey and Voorhies did sustain significant damage and we intend to have ready to go for harvest with some limited capacity.

Our location at Chelsea was damaged severely and will not be open during fall harvest.  We will work with producers in this area to develop plans for delivery to alternative Heartland locations.

Please understand this is a very fluid situation and the Heartland Team is working diligently to be ready for harvest as best we can.  The majority of Heartland locations will be “business as usual” this fall.  Please contact our West Des Moines Grain Team with questions or concerns.