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MoDOT Assesses Flood Damage After Water Recedes

Sara Spaedy, flickr.com/somedonkus
Flood waters cover a small highway in Sedalia, MO.

Many parts of the Midwest dealt with record-setting rainfall this June. Areas of Northeast Missouri received nearly 500% more rain than normal, and roadways are paying the price.

MoDOT closed more than 130 roads at the peak of flooding last week. Only halfof them had been reopened as of Tuesday morning. Now that floodwaters have started to recede on some roads, MoDOT crews have been able to assess the damage.

Credit National Weather Service
Some areas of Northeast Missouri received nearly 8 inches more than the average June rainfall.

Kevin James, Assistant Engineer for MoDOT’s Northeast District, said damage to his district’s roads and bridges has been worse than anticipated, but little severe damage has been reported.

“We are seeing some scour on our bridges and some damage to our pavement and shoulders as the water goes down, but this is not severe damage like the entire road being washed away. That’s been pretty few and far between in our district,” James said.

James said the most severe damage was done to Outer Road in Lincoln County near the Quiver River. “The entire roadway did wash out, leaving a large gap in the road that we need to come back and repair,” he said.

James said damage to Outer Road and other minor routes will not be addressed immediately because they are not heavily used and detours are often available. Major roads are MoDOT’s primary concern right now, and it aims to continue opening main routes as floodwaters recede.

Click here for a live interactive map of MoDOT’s road closures.