Roads in shambles from the recent heavy rains are a top priority for Public Works, whose commissioner said Tuesday that he’s been working with the governor and Senate to come up with some "immediate" funding for the repairs.
In an afternoon press conference with reporters, Public Works Commissioner Darryl Smalls said it’s difficult at this point — with the territory already in a tight financial position — to pinpoint exactly how much the department will get from the Senate or what the funding source will be.
"What we’re probably going to be looking for is an authorization up to a certain amount," Smalls said, adding that the issue will be dealt with during next week’s full Senate session. Smalls estimated that damage to the roads alone might be in the "millions of dollars."
In the meantime, the department will be reaching out to its vendors and other companies to see who’s available to get the work done. Smalls said he’s authorized some spot patching to reduce the risk of accidents caused by drivers swerving into the opposite lane to avoid potholes. But some more permanent work will follow — including repairs to entire sections of roadway that need to be removed and replaced with new asphalt or boosted by drainage structures needed to help cut down on the large amounts of water flowing next to or across the roads.
"The damages are that substantial," Smalls said, explaining that much of the damage has been caused by overflowing aquifers and streams that have become active over the past couple months as back-to-back storms have continued to exacerbate the problems.
"We really haven’t had a breather," V.I. Territorial Emergency Management Agency head Mark Walters said later in the press conference. Walters said the government just started the process of reimbursing the various departments and agencies for damages sustained during then Hurricane Otto, and are still working on Earl.
In both cases, however, the territory has received presidential disaster area declarations, opening the doors for federal public assistance funds to help the government along with its expenses. VITEMA and the various agencies are currently compiling the paperwork and may be going after an unprecedented third declaration, which Walters said is still needed given the state of much of the territory’s infrastructure.
VITEMA has four teams out at this point doing assessments on St. Croix — one of which is dedicated solely to looking at the schools, while others are looking at areas around Paul E. Joseph Stadium, the Randall "Doc" James Racetrack and the Legislature building, which took on mud during the recent onslaught brought on by Tropical Storm Tomas.
Once the information is collected, it comes back to VITEMA for analysis and a recommendation is then sent to the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Walters said VITEMA is on track to have a package sent off by the end of the week.
Meanwhile, teams from Human Services, Red Cross, Public Works and Education, among others, are looking at local homes to see if the territory qualifies for individual assistance.
"Based on the numbers, I don’t think we’re there yet, but we’re pushing to capture as much as possible," Walters said.
Smalls said later that the rains have also held up many local road projects, but added that the department will continue working to make sure they move forward. Projects include:
St. Croix
-the Queen Mary Highway project, which Smalls said is actively ongoing but got delayed as crews uncovered various utility lines — water and sewer, or electrical duct banks — below the roadway;
-the Christiansted Bypass, which Smalls said will likely wrap up in the next six months after infrastructure, sidewalks and drainage structure work, along with the paving of the asphalt is completed;
– the area in front of Gov. Juan F. Luis Hospital, which is riddled with potholes that Smalls said his crews are addressing to make it "more traversable for the motoring public." Smalls added that the project was initially held up as Public Works waited on the V.I. Water and Power Authority to complete a project in the area, but then got delayed as the recent rain made the potholes worse.
St. Thomas
-the Long Bay road project, the first phase (stretching from Vitraco Park to Yacht Haven Grande) of which Smalls said is substantially completed, while the second phase (running from the Yacht Haven Grande entrance to the Lucinda Millin Home) has been held up as crews waited for Innovative to place its utility lines underground;
-Brookman Road, which Smalls said had to be redesigned in part because a nearby aquifer has caused heavy water flow in the area; and
-road construction from Fort Milner to Four Winds Plaza, which Smalls said is actually a V.I. Waste Management Authority project that is expected to be completed in "short order."
Smalls said the territory hasn’t "seen this much rainfall in several years," and explained to residents concerned about the way the roads are designed that the department will be working to engineer and install as many drainage structures — culverts, guts, etc. — as possible in the future to accommodate the extra water flow.
