Vermont has begun to receive federal funding to help the state recover from the Halloween storm that damaged roads, culverts, and bridges across the state.
The U.S. Department of Transportation has approved $500,000 to reimburse the state for its initial work on federal and state highways immediately after the storm.
The storm left an estimated $5 million in damage across the state. Vermont officials say this $500,000 from the federal government is just the first chunk of a sum that will eventually reimburse the state for the majority of total repairs.
“These damages right now are estimates,” said Wayne Symonds, chief engineer and highway division director with the state Agency of Transportation. “Our reimbursement will be made on actual costs.”
Symonds said the initial money will likely go toward paying contractors who were hired to repair culverts washed out in Chittenden and Franklin Counties, and embankment slides that had to be reinforced with rock.
For the first 90 days, federal funding pays for 100% of highway repairs, he explained. After that, they pay 80% for state highways and 90% for interstates.
“So depending on how quickly we can make the repairs, we’re gonna get a different amount,” Symonds said, noting that the vast majority of repairs were actually completed in the days immediately after the storm.
But some of the more major projects, he said, could take up to 24 months to repair completely, like a bridge that was washed out along Route 105 in Richford. Though a temporary bridge has been in place since the storm, Symonds said a permanent fix will likely be one of the final repairs completed.
In addition to the early release funds, the Federal Emergency Management Agency recently completed a damage assessment for local roads. If they qualify for a federal Public Assistance disaster declaration, the municipalities would be reimbursed for 75% of their emergency response and repairs following the storm. Gov. Phil Scott said he plans to make a formal request for that declaration in the coming weeks.
“This funding is a critical step toward restoring Vermont’s infrastructure after this devastating storm,” Scott said in a statement. “I’m grateful to all of the emergency responders and road crews for their ongoing service in these efforts.”
Towns in Addison, Chittenden, Essex, Franklin, Lamoille, Orange, Orleans and Washington counties are set to be considered for funding from FEMA for repairs to local infrastructure.
“The state has placed a high priority on emergency management planning, particularly since Tropical Storm Irene in 2011,” Transportation Secretary Joe Flynn said in a statement. “We were prepared for this, we activated swiftly, and our crews out in the field worked diligently to get roadways re-opened as quickly as possible.
Symonds said emphasized that the storm wasn’t anything that the state couldn’t deal with, especially with the federal government’s help.
“We get these occasionally, and this was on the bigger side of that,” Symonds said. “But you know, it happens.”
