Hurricane Helene

Updated 10/7/24 - Hurricane Helene has been one of the latest natural disasters to strike the southeastern United States, bringing devastation to rural communities, farms and farm animals.

According to initial estimates, Helene has killed over 1.5 million chickens, and thousands of pigs and cows across Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas. Like previous hurricanes, this tragic loss of animal life sheds light on the vulnerabilities baked into industrial animal agriculture.

Home to almost 8.2 million pigs, 941 million chickens, and hundreds of toxic manure lagoons, North Carolina—the second largest pig farming state and one of the largest chicken-producing state in the country—has a long history of suffering during hurricanes.

Helene is only the latest instance of factory-farmed animals' being mass-killed by this type of natural disaster.

Hurricane Florence

Flooding killed 3.4 million chickens and 5,500 pigs confined on factory farms, according to the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, one of the states hit hardest by Florence.

Hurricane Floyd

In 1999, Hurricane Floyd struck the state resulting in flooding that killed more than 2 million chickens and turkeys and 20,000 pigs. In response, the state bought out multiple pig farms in the floodplains and permanently closed down hundreds of manure lagoons—giant, open-air, artificial ponds built to hold the wastewater, manure, and other hazardous and toxic wastes produced at industrial farms.

An Unfortunate Failure

Unfortunately, this action failed to regulate factory farm activity in the area or mitigate farmed animal suffering in years to come. In 2016, an estimated 1.8 million chickens and 2,800 pigs were killed in the wake of Hurricane Matthew—just about half of that from Hurricane Florence in 2018. During Hurricane Florence, over 3.4 million chickens and 5,500 pigs were killed in North Carolina.   

A Terrible End

Not only do these animals normally live in barren, intensely confined environments, but they’re inevitably at risk for increased suffering and cruel death by drowning, mudslide, starvation, dehydration, and structural collapse during natural disasters and extreme weather events.

The sheer number of animals housed per building, more than 50,000 for chickens, forgoes even the possibility of evacuation. Access is often limited by flooding, so animals are boarded up to mitigate escape and left to fend for themselves for days without food or water. And animals bound for slaughter suffer excess confinement and starvation in holding pens at slaughterhouses closed from evacuation, staff shortages, and structural damages. They will also likely be killed with backup euthanasia methods one by one. Inherently slower, more stressful, and more prone to human error than the regular mass methods.

The risks posed by factory farms during extreme weather events don’t stop at farmed animal suffering though, they extend to the environment as well.

Manure lagoons are notoriously problematic—their noxious odors and water-polluting toxins have prompted of hundreds of lawsuits—but are especially so during hurricanes. Normally these lagoons are slowly drained via pumpage onto agricultural fields, where frequent runoff occurs, or sometimes directly into adjacent waterways, which poison local groundwaters, decimate wildlife, and threaten public health.

These lagoons are not capable of withstanding the excess rain or flooding from tropical storms, however, and frequently breach and overflow, directly releasing ton of their toxic sludge into the neighboring communities. Particularly threatened are the primarily low-income, communities of color that largely surround factory farms, constituting a major environmental justice issue. The antibiotic resistant pathogens and hazardous chemicals released by floodwaters wreak havoc in these already devastated areas. 

This all boils down to one simple truth: Factory farming must end.

Better infrastructure, storm preparedness, and relocating facilities in flood zones is needed, but these are only the first steps in a larger systemic shift. We need to stop our reliance on cheap animal protein and encourage a transition to more sustainable farming methods. Fortunately, we are seeing policymakers take notice and introducing solutions. 

The Industrial Agriculture Accountability Act (IAA) is one such legislative effort aimed at holding agribusinesses accountable for the risk they pose to both animals, communities and the environment.

The IAA would require corporations to develop disaster preparedness plans for their faculties and ensure they bear the cost of cleanups in the aftermath of natural disasters. By supporting the IAA, we can push for meaningful changes that protect our food system from natural disasters and mitigate further impacts caused by industrial agriculture.  

Take Action

Support policies that require agribusiness create disaster prevention plans like the Industrial Agriculture Accountability Act. Send your message to Congress now.