U.S. Senator John Thune (R-South Dakota) today applauded the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) for providing $750,000 in quick release emergency relief funds to South Dakota to help repair roads and bridges damaged in the June flooding. The funding will be used to make repairs in two locations on SD-19 near Vermillion in Clay County, two locations on SD-34 in Ziebach and Mead Counties, and three sites on SD-46 near Beresford in Union County.
“Quick release of these needed transportation dollars will help jumpstart repairs on some of the hardest hit roads and bridges from the June flooding,” said Thune. “South Dakotans rely on our state’s infrastructure to travel and conduct business throughout our state’s wide open spaces. I continue to look for ways to support the recovery efforts of communities and areas of the state hit by the devastating June storms and tornadoes.”
The $750,000 of DOT quick release emergency funds from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) are in addition to $750,000 of emergency funds issued to the state on June 26, 2014. The funds from FHWA's Emergency Relief program provide resources to the South Dakota DOT to assist with emergency work done to highways and bridges caused by flood damage.
Thune serves as the Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, which has jurisdiction over DOT. For more information about DOT’s emergency funds, visit the FHWA website, http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/programadmin/erelief.cfm.