NORTHFORD, Conn. — Farmer William Dellacamera of Ciccarelli’s Harrison Hill Farm invited U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal to tour his damaged lands in Northford on Friday.
Dellacamera was passionate in his plea to Blumenthal. He was pointing fingers and stating his demands.
“I want the lip service to end; its time to fix these problems. These problems have been going on for way too long," Dellacamera shouted at Blumenthal.
Blumenthal didn't take offense to the intense exchange. He said he was happy to be there.
"Part of my job is to listen. In fact, sometimes, it’s the best part of my job, and it’s the only way I can do my job," Blumenthal said.
On Monday, a hailstorm whipped through parts of Connecticut. In a matter of about 15 minutes, the storm caused hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of damage.
A group of 50 farmers and community members were there to back "Farmer Willy," as they call him, and to express their frustrations with the way the state operates in their relief efforts.
"Half the time, their answer is a low interest loan. Listen, if we wanted a loan, we would go get one. We don't need no more loans. That's it, period," Dellacamera said emphatically.
Blumenthal agrees and is offering whatever support he can give.
"We need to reform the system to make it fairer because right now it's dominated by the big agriculture companies that have monopolies, but we also need to get these folks immediate relief."
Blumenthal added that he hopes money will be in farmers' pockets in a matter of weeks.
----
Alexa Farrell is a reporter for FOX61 News. She can be reached at afarrell@fox61.com. Follow her on Facebook and Instagram.
----
Do you have a story idea or something on your mind you want to share? We want to hear from you! Email us at newstips@fox61.com.
----
HERE ARE MORE WAYS TO GET FOX61 NEWS
Download the FOX61 News APP
iTunes: Click here to download
Google Play: Click here to download
Stream Live on ROKU: Add the channel from the ROKU store or by searching FOX61.
Steam Live on FIRE TV: Search ‘FOX61’ and click ‘Get’ to download.