Emergency repairs are underway to stabilize a flood-damaged pedestrian trail in the Sioux City metro area.
Jessica Felix, an engineer with the Iowa Department of Transportation, says the agency plans to spend about $8-million to make repairs to the trail along the Big Sioux River and Interstate 29.
Felix says, “The emergency project consists of stabilizing the riverbank using rock in order to fill in scour damages, and insure the interstate is protected, and the riverbank is stabilized from further damages until a permanent repair can be made.”
She estimates flooding caused $22-million damage to the primary roadway system in northwest Iowa, which doesn’t include county or city costs. Felix says the rugged terrain makes work on this project very challenging.
“The slope is so unstable, and as the Big Sioux recedes, we have scour damages that we cannot always see with the naked eye,” she says. “We dumped a load of rock, 30 seconds later, 2,500 tons of rock ended up in the Big Sioux River.”
The emergency repairs are expected to be finished this fall, and Felix says part of the trail could reopen for pedestrians next year.
With flooding throughout northwest Iowa, she says people need to stay out of construction zones and not go around barricades. Violators could face a $10,000 fine and jail time.
(By Sheila Brummer, Iowa Public Radio)