Power Outages Hard on Southwest Minnesota Livestock Producers

WORTHINGTON (AP) - The spring storms that knocked out power in parts of southwestern Minnesota have been hard on livestock producers.

Erin deKoning says she's glad the power came back Monday at her farm near Ellsworth.  She says it didn't take long after last Tuesday's ice storm for her family's beef cows to realize the electrical fence that kept them in their yard was no longer working.

DeKoning also says the bad weather put stress on animals at other farms. She's seeing sick calves everywhere through her veterinary practice.

Keith Sieve, a hog producer near Wilmont, says his investment in a backup generator was "money well spent." He says he has enough propane to keep it running until Thursday - and hopes power is restored by then.