President Trump Surveying GA's Hurricane Michael Damage Monday

ATLANTA, GA -- President Donald Trump is scheduled to visit Georgia sometime Monday to witness the damage left behind by last week's Hurricane Michael. The storm devastated southwest and central Georgia, right through the heart of Georgia's number one industry. The Georgia Department of Agriculture is coordinating efforts to assist recovery in the areas affected most by Hurricane Michael.

President Trump declared a state of emergency in Georgia as the storm made its way from its Florida panhandle landfall into the state. Gov. Nathan Deal and the state's entire congressional delegation urged the president to take the action so Georgians impacted by the storm could begin an immediate recovery.

"Michael's impact has been the most widespread and devastating hurricane in recollection to impact Georgia's agriculture industry," said Agriculture Commissioner Gary W. Black. "Crops, animals and infrastructure have all taken a substantial loss."

Poultry contributes $23.3 billion to Georgia's economy and has reported the most widespread power outages and loss. To date, the GDA has received reports of 84 chicken houses, estimated to have held more than two million chickens, that were destroyed. The farms, dairies and processing plants impacted were in Appling, Colquitt, Coffee, Decatur, Evans, Houston, Mitchell, Randolph, Lee and Wilcox Counties.

As Georgia farmers feared, the state's main cash crops of cotton, pecans and peanuts have been devastated to the tune of an estimated $2 billion worth of damage to the Georgia economy, Julie McPeake, chief communication officer for the Georgia Department of Agriculture told Patch.

Cotton, which is the state's top row crop and ranks second in the nation, also suffered massive loss due to the hurricane. Damaging winds drove much of the fiber to the ground for a total loss or tangled the cotton, making it much harder to extract clean lint during the ginning process

The White House has not released any details about the president's visit, the AJC quotes the Associated Press as reporting.

SEE ALSO:

• Hurricane Michael Devastates Georgia's Agricultural Industry
• Girl Fatally Crushed By Carport During Hurricane Michael
• Hurricane Michael: Storm Brings Down Trees In Cherokee County
• Hurricane Michael In GA: Girl Dies, $2B Crop Loss

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MEXICO BEACH, FL - OCTOBER 12: Homes and businesses along US 98 are left in devastation by Hurricane Michael on October 12, 2018 in Mexico Beach, Florida. At least 13 people have died across the South since Hurricane Michael made landfall along the Florida Panhandle Wednesday as a Category 4 storm. (Photo by Mark Wallheiser/Getty Images)