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A Panama City man was killed in a two-vehicle crash late Monday, Panama City Police (PCPD) reported.

PANAMA CITY - A Panama City man was killed in a two-vehicle crash late Monday, Panama City Police (PCPD) reported.

The crash occurred just after 10:45 p.m. on U.S. 231 at Bayou George Drive, according to a PCPD news release. A white Chevrolet truck driven by 23-year-old Stephan Henderson, of Tallahassee, was traveling north in the inside lane of U.S. 231. The second vehicle, a black Ford F-150 truck driven by 30-year-old Jonathan Roberts, of Panama City, was traveling west on Bayou George Drive.

The black Ford truck attempted to cross U.S. 231 to make a left turn and entered the path of the white Chevrolet, according to the news release. The Chevrolet struck the Ford in the driver's side, killing Roberts, PCPD reported.

The crash remains under investigation, but police reported alcohol "does not appear to be a contributing factor."

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A Panama City man was killed in a two-vehicle crash late Monday, Panama City Police (PCPD) reported. PANAMA CITY - A Panama City man was killed in a two-vehicle crash late Monday, Panama City Police (PCPD) reported. The crash occurred just after 10:45 p.m. on U.S.

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The disease cannot be controlled or cured.

There are several races of panama disease, with tropical race 4 (also known as TR4) of most concern due to its capability of infecting the popular cavendish banana varieties growing in tropical conditions.

Panama disease tropical race 4 has spread rapidly throughout Asia in the past half century.

The disease spreads from the movement of infected soil, water or contaminated equipment as well as root to root contact.

A cross section of a banana plant stem showing discolouration of the vascular tissue.
Photo: Australian Banana Grower's Counc

Fungal spores can survive in the soil for up to 30 years.

Disease symptoms include leaf yellowing, wilted leaves and stem splitting. Some plants may not show symptoms until fruit emerges.

Biosecurity Queensland warns growers not to cut or remove plants that show signs of infection, as this triggers the fungus to produce spores and increases the risk of spreading disease.

Implementation of on-farm biosecurity measures like wash-down and decontamination procedures are the most effective methods in the prevention of the spread of the disease.
How many Australian farms have been affected by Panama disease tropical race 4?
Panama disease tropical race 4 was first detected in Australia near Darwin in 1997, where it devastated the nation's banana industry.

A second detection was made at a banana farm in Tully, a town about 140 kilometres south of Cairns, in March 2015.

The disease was found at three separate locations on the Tully farm, with the first discovery made in March, the second in August and the third in September.

In total, 14 plants showed symptoms of Panama disease tropical race 4 on the farm.

More than 16,000 plants in the vicinity of the three infected locations were destroyed.

The Tully farm has quarantined the contaminated areas and is still producing bananas from the remaining sections of the farm.

There are about 600 commercial banana farms in operation in Australia, with the larger farms located in North Queensland.

"The banana farms in North Queensland grow about 90 to 95 per cent of Australia's banana production," Australian Banana Growers' Council Chief Executive Officer Jim Pekin said.

"Other banana production areas are northern New South Wales, Western Australia at Carnarvon and Kununurra, and parts of the Northern Territory."
What will the spread of TR4 to Latin America mean for Australia?
Researchers from a recent study published in PLOS Pathogens have warned Panama disease tropical race 4, which has wreaked havoc in south east Asia for the past half century, will eventually make its way to Latin America, devastating the world's supply of banana exports.

While the spread of Panama disease tropical race 4 is alarming, the impact this latest research will have on Australia is minimal.

"Australian growers produce bananas for our domestic market and we'll be continuing to do that no matter what happens internationally," Australian Banana Growers' Council chief executive officer Jim Pekin said.

"We grow enough bananas in Australia for our consumers so there's no impact on Australian banana supply and prices from international banana production.

Mr Pekin said there were significant biosecurity and research efforts underway internationally to control tropical race 4, and he hoped if it spread to Latin America the impact would be limited.​

While a fall in banana supply from Latin America would result in a prospective gap in the market for banana growers in Australia, Mr Pekin said labour costs and overall output would hinder any large-scale output opportunities.

"While some Australian banana growers have established niche markets overseas, it's unlikely that Australia would ever become a substantial banana exporter," Mr Pekin said.

"The reason is that the cost of production, particularly labour costs, are much higher in Australia than in other banana producing countries and it's unlikely that large-scale exports would become viable for us.

"Australian producers currently grow about 370,000 tonnes of bananas each year which meets the needs of our domestic market but is relatively small in global terms. In comparison, a large banana exporting country in Central America, such as Costa Rica, each year exports about four times the level of our entire annual production."

Biosecurity Queensland said they do not anticipate Panama disease tropical race 4 will have any significant impact on supply or price of Queensland bananas.
Are banana prices expected to increase?
Banana prices in Australia are not expected to increase nor is banana supply likely to be restricted as a result of this recent study.

"There hasn't been any impact on banana prices or supply levels as a result of Panama TR4 being detected on the one farm in the Tully Valley," Australian Banana Growers' Council Chief Executive Officer Jim Pekin said.

"It's been just over nine months since TR4 was detected on that farm and North Queensland's overall banana production levels are continuing as usual."
How is Queensland managing Panama tropical race 4 disease?
Since the discovery of Panama tropical race 4 disease on the Tully farm in March, the Queensland government has invested $3.88 million in response, waived inspection fees, erected fencing around the quarantined Tully property and conducted feral pig control on the farm.

The Australian Banana Grower's Council have been training banana growers to implement strong on-farm biosecurity practices.

Biosecurity Queensland conduct regular surveillance in the region surrounding the Tully farm, with almost 480 propertys surveyed and 1,360 samples collected for diagnostic testing.

Biosecurity Queensland aims to work with the banana industry to improve management of the disease in the future.
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What Panama disease TR4 means for Australia's bananas

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The disease cannot be controlled or cured. There are several races of panama disease, with tropical race 4 (also known as TR4) of most concern due to its capability of infecting the popular cavendish banana varieties growing in tropical conditions. Panama disease tropical race 4 has spread rapidly throughout Asia in the past half century.