A new report on the overall mental well being of farmers, ranchers and workers in agriculture said depression is wide spread.
The report focused on the overall mental well-being of those in the agriculture industry. Of the 671 respondents, 67% reported feeling sad or depressed and 9% experienced suicidal thoughts.
The Florida Farm Bureau, UF/IFAS Center for Leadership and Mind Your Melon Foundation released a report highlighting the mental distress that Florida farmers are facing.
Nearly 25% of Florida farmers reported that weather and its impacts on farms cause high levels of stress and uncertainty. Of the hundreds of responses collected last year between August and November, about 63% of farmers reported feeling nervous or worried about the future.
Other stressor from the report included market volatility, lack of public understanding of agriculture and financial insecurity.
President of the Florida Farm Bureau Jeb Smith said the survey had some very alarming and troubling results.
“It gave us insight into the stress, and pressure points and barriers that are happening in the agriculture industry and the rural sector of Florida. It will help us build a healthier Florida and a healthier agriculture industry.”
Smith said in today’s society there is a lot more openness to talking on mental health and a lot more focus on mental health.
“Society has changed. It doesn’t have the family support, church support or religious support it used to.”
Smith said this should help the Farm Bureau and other agencies, put more resources into things that are needed.
“There is a lot of stress in agriculture. So where can the Farm Bureau help in some of the stress points that are producers are facing?”
The survey also found 63% of farmers and ranchers were worried about the future and 32% reported loneliness.
More than 600 people who work in agriculture filled out the survey. 52.5% said they had never sought any help from a mental health progression while 44% said they were not interested.
If you know someone who is struggling with thoughts of suicide, you can reach out to the 988 suicide and crisis lifeline or call 211.
Okeechobee City Council learned the sculptures in Cattlemen’s Square Park are not holding up to the weather conditions as one hoped.
The sculptures need cleaning and maintenance and one bidder wanted over $17,400 to do the work.
Angie Griffin with Okeechobee Main Street told the council that the sculptures are starting to pit and tarnish due to the mineral deposits in the sprinkler system water.
It is estimated it will cost $6,000 annually to maintain the sculptures in addition to the ground work and routine lawn maintenance.
“There is a maintenance on them that we weren’t aware of when we first started the sculpture project. The sculptures are starting to look a little rough. It is something we have to continue to keep up.”
The issue will likely come up again during city budget workshops.
Florida is joining four other southeastern states this week in Operation Southern Slow Down, a regional campaign targeting speeding and aggressive drivers.
The Florida Highway Patrol says the goal is to reduce deadly crashes through increased enforcement and public education.
The effort is part of a partnership with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and includes Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, and Tennessee.
Troopers will focus on high-crash corridors and remind drivers that speeding significantly increases the risk of serious injury or death.
There has been a 13 percent increase in fatal crashes in Florida in the past year, the FHP said.
Members of the Pulitzer Prize Board have appealed to the Florida Supreme Court their effort to halt a lawsuit filed in Okeechobee by President Donald Trump.
Lawyers for the near two dozen board members asked the court to accept jurisdiction in the case. The Pulitzer Prize board members took the action after two lower courts, including the Okeechobee Circuit Court Judge Robert Pegg, declined to delay the lawsuit until President Trump is out of office.
The circuit court and 4th district court of appeals both denied a motion to dismiss the lawsuit.
Trump said he was defamed when the board honored the Pulitzer Prize to the New York Times and the Washington Post for reporting on the alleged Russian Hoax in the 2016 presidential election.
Glades County Commissioners discussed a recent crash on state road 78 east at the Fisheating Creek bridge that claimed the life of two small children from Clewiston, ages 5 and 7.
Chief Deputy Duane Potorff said the bridge has a dip for over 30 years and every time they resurface the road, the dip remains.
“If a heavy rain comes down in five minutes there is a big puddle of water at the base of that bridge.”
FHP said the vehicle involved hydroplaned on the wet pavement and crossed the center line causing the collision.
James Madrigal urged the county to add more patrols on state road 78 due to the speeders and reckless drivers.
“There is just a lack of respect and common courtesy. These drivers just don’t care. They will pass the next vehicle on a curve, when a car is coming too close,” he noted.
Commissioner Hattie Taylor said it was a terrible experience for first-responders to go through. She said motorists really don’t save any time by speeding.
“Just about every time I drive down 78, I say a prayer. People make fun of that, but you have to be cautious because I see someone trying to pass at a ridiculous time.”