FORT GIBSON, OK (KJRH) — A brutal year continues for Muskogee County farmers, after their crops were washed out twice in May and June.
Those floods left Darren Perry's Fort Gibson crops looking like a chapped desert. But he planted yet again in June.
"We can't stop, we can't give up. There's a lot of families that count on us, and our banks count on us. We can't give up," Perry said.
And this time, the water didn't rise - just the opposite.
When the Army Corps of Engineers dropped the Arkansas River to recover the barges at the Webbers Falls dam, the low water exposed the pipes farmers use to water their crops.
It's been nearly two weeks since farmers have been able to use their pivots, and the river level can't rise back soon enough.
"We never imagined something like this happening to us. And it's been a struggle on all of us - physically, emotionally," Perry said.
Now, it's a waiting game to see how the new crop turns out when Perry harvests in 45 days.
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