FHWA 20-09
Monday, July 6, 2009
Contact:  Nancy Singer
Tel:  202-366-0660

U.S. Secretary of Transportation Announces More Than $201 Million
to Repair Damaged Roads and Bridges

WASHINGTON, DC – The federal government is making more than $201 million available to states across
the nation to cover costs incurred to repair roads and bridges damaged by a variety of natural emergencies and
catastrophic events, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood announced today. 

“Restoring transportation routes is vital for communities recovering from disaster,” Secretary LaHood said. 
“It is the first step to getting peoples’ daily lives back on track.”

Under the Federal Highway Administration's emergency relief program, a total of $201,490,146 will go to
15 states, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, and federal lands agencies to pay for damages caused by storms,
flooding, hurricanes and other disasters and events.  

Kentucky and Washington will receive $27 million and $24 million respectively for winter storms in January 2009. 
Louisiana will receive $16 million to pay for Hurricane Gustav damage.  

The funds will reimburse states to fix or replace highways, bridges and other roadway structures such as traffic
signals and signs, guardrails and lighting.  Also eligible are costs associated with detours, debris removal and
other immediate measures necessary to restore traffic flow in impacted areas.

The 2009 Continuing Appropriations Act and the 2006 Department of Defense Appropriations Act both provide
additional funding for the FHWA program which Congress annually authorizes at $100 million.  The program
reimburses states for the repair or reconstruction of federal-aid highways that were damaged in disasters and
catastrophic failures.

 

EMERGENCY RELIEF PROGRAM FUND ALLOCATIONS

 

 

 

 

State

Event

Allocation
Amount

Subtotal
by State

Alabama

March 2009 Heavy Rainfall

          300,000

       1,700,000

May 2009 Heavy Rainfall

       1,400,000

Alaska

May 2005 Flooding

       2,477,025

       6,538,770

September 2005 Storm Surge and Flooding

          409,140

August 2006 Storms

       1,152,605

May 2009 Spring Thaw, Ice-jams, and Severe Flooding

       2,500,000

American Samoa

January 2004 Tropical Cyclone Heta

       8,000,000

       8,000,000

Arkansas

January 2009 Ice Storm

       9,849,056

       9,849,056

Illinois

September 2008 Storms and Flooding

       1,086,599

       1,086,599

Indiana

June 2008 Midwest Flooding

          400,000

          400,000

Iowa

May - June 2007 Storms and Flooding

          526,442

       3,396,660

June 2008 Midwest Flooding

       2,870,218

Kentucky

January 2009 Ice Storm

     27,513,433

     30,346,291

May 2009 Flooding

       2,832,858

Louisiana

September 2008 Hurricane Gustav

     16,027,935

     16,027,935

Mississippi

August 2005 Hurricane Katrina

     17,000,000

     20,000,000

March 2009 Popps Ferry Bridge Damage

       3,000,000

New Hampshire

May 2006 Rainfall and Flooding

          206,222

          206,222

New York

July 2008 Severe Storms

       3,378,737

       7,160,285

December  2008 Ice Storm

       3,781,548

North Carolina

November 2006 Storm

       2,479,372

       2,479,372

North Dakota

Spring 2009 Devils Lake Basin Flooding

     16,800,000

     24,800,000

Spring 2009 Statewide Flooding

       4,000,000

Spring 2009 West James Basin Flooding

       4,000,000

Tennessee

January 2009 Severe Winter Weather

       1,023,183

       1,023,183

Virgin Islands

October 2008 Hurricane Omar

          730,591

          730,591

Washington

December 2007 Rainfall and Flooding

       4,798,000

     29,245,182

May 2008 Flooding

             7,500

July 2008 I-5/SR 11 Overpass Truck Crash

             1,000

November 2008 Storm

          300,000

January 2009 Storm

     24,138,682

Federal Lands Agencies

Includes Arkansas March 2008 storms (Ouachita and Ozark-St. Francis National Forest); Colorado Winter 2007-2008 storms (San Juna National Forest); Maine July 2007 storms (White Mountain National Forest); Texas September 2008 Tropical Storm Lowell (Big Bend National Park); and numerous other storms causing damage to national parks and forests and Indian lands around the country.

     38,500,000

     38,500,000

Total

    201,490,146

    201,490,146

 

 

 

 

 

Briefing Room