Now that some of the water is receding around flooded portions of the state, highway department crews are trying to evaluate the damage to area roadways.

Highway department officials say they believe most of the damage is in the northeast and north-central part of the state. And they say the most significant damage isn’t related to flooding, but landslides caused by heavy rains.

Roughly a dozen landslides have been reported--one along Highway 65 near Marshall--forcing the closure of one lane.

(Randy Ort, Arkansas Highway Department) "We anticipate there are going to be dozens of areas around the state--on our state highways--that have had some sort of damage. Right now we don't have a total, but we feel it will be in the neighborhood of 5 to 10 million dollars."

At least a dozen counties are reporting high water or damage to state highways.
And while it will be expensive to fix, the majority of the money is expected to come from the federal government.

(Ort) “Right now 35 counties qualify for federal disaster relief, so much of the money for repairs will come from the federal government. Some of that money will be 100%, some will require a small state match. We'll be working closely with the federal government to receive those funds.”
Highway crews are making temporary repairs to some roads just so they can be reopened. In many cases, they will have to come back later for more permanent repairs.

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