AMARILLO, TEXAS -- 2011 was a rough year for the Texas Panhandle, but better news this new year for farmers and ranchers who lost a lot to the wildfires of last summer.

The Farm Service Agency is now taking applications for emergency loans. That Emergency Loan Program is in effect for the following counties: Castro, Childress, Collingsworth, Cottle, Deaf Smith, Hall, Hardeman, Oldham, Parmer, Potter, and Randall. Anyone who lost in those fires 30 percent or more of their production, or suffered any physical loss between April 6 and August 29 are eligible for the loans.

"Think of livestock producers, could have lost barns or a farmer lost barns if they stored equipment, fences, buildings on the farm that they used, irrigation equipment if there was some," said one Farm Service Agency District Director, Beth Batenhorst. "Just any kind of physical property that had damage to it."

The deadline to get those applications in for the Emergency Loan Program is August, 13, 2012.