Georgian floods worsen grain outlook in USSR

Grain crops in the Soviet Republic of Georgia have been damaged by floods after unusually heavy rains, the Communist Party newspaper Pravda reported. Several mountain rivers had burst their banks and swept into sown fields, according to the report.

Pravda gave no details of how much grain was lost but said emergency measures enabled a considerable part of it to be saved.

The grain harvest has been seriously affected by bad weather in various parts of the Soviet Union this year. The US Agriculture Department forecast last month that the Kremlin would have to import 40 million metric tons of grain in the next 12 months as a result.