Mr. Speaker, on June 7, the shore regions of Beaupré and Orleans Island, near Quebec City, were battered by torrential rains and hail.
The municipalities of Saint-Laurent, Saint-Jean and Sainte-Famille on Orleans Island and Château-Richer on the north shore of the St. Lawrence were particularly hard hit by this downpour. The strawberry and potato crops are the most seriously affected.
Damage reports indicate that potato farmers suffered the heaviest losses. Surface runoffs completely destroyed all of the work which potato growers had done in recent years to control soil erosion.
This torrential rain swept away years of hard work. Potato growers are looking to the federal government and the Minister of Agriculture for support to which they are entitled to repair the heavy damage caused by this disaster-damage which I had occasion to view personally when I visited the area on the weekend.