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Six months post-Hurricane Helene, work continues on the Broad Street Bridge as well as other bridges impacted by the late September 2024 hurricane. The Broad Street Bridge in Elizabethton was heavily damaged by Hurricane Helene.

Work on the bridge was previously scheduled to be completed at the end of this month but was adjusted to early July.

Tennessee Department of Transportation officials have repeatedly said that East Tennessee is unique in its geological features, which can cause the modification of road and bridge construction timelines. Earlier this year, a geotechnical investigation discovered that installing micro-piles would be more complicated than initially expected due to the complexity of the cobble rock underneath the bridge, which is up to 18 feet in depth.

This discovery also complicated the diversion and dewatering process laid out in the contractor’s plan. The Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) is dedicated to preserving this historic bridge that was built in 1929.

The past several weeks, workmen have been on the job every day and even Saturday, working to repair the bridge. Work has included diverting the water around the footers as well as dewatering the area around the footers, drilling micro-piles through the 18 feet of cobble rock and into solid rock.

The work will also include jacking the bridge and pouring new footers following stabilization. Crews are both on and below the bridge working.

Also, in recent weeks, a crew has been busy cleaning flood debris from the banks of the Doe River north and south of the Broad Street and Elk Avenue bridges. In September 2024, Hurricane Helene devastated interstates and state routes in East Tennessee. Of the 49 sections of state/local routes initially closed due to the damage caused by Hurricane Helene, 44 of those have now reopened.

Several hurricane-related projects still remain to be completed. Among them is cleanup and work toward reopening Cat Island Park on S. Main Street. Ballfields have been reconstructed, but the park remains closed.

Also, several roads in the Butler, Poga, Hampton and Roan Mountain areas still remain closed because of needed work due to damage caused by Helene. The Budget Committee of the Carter County Commission continues to work with a large number of unplanned bills and expenses that come from the recovery of the hurricane. Some of the biggest expenditures come from repairs to mountain roads and bridges, which were washed out by the flooding that accompanied the hurricane. The county is in the process of issuing $40 million in bonds to fund the initial payments, with hopes that the Federal Emergency Management Agency will reimburse a lot of the county’s expenses.

The Carter County Commission and School Board have approved repairs to Hampton High School, which was heavily damaged by the hurricane. Students finished out the year at Keenburg Elementary School. Graduation was held this past week at the Martin Center at ETSU.

There’s much work to be done before the next school year due to damages caused by Hurricane Helene. The work is slow, but we are reminded that even though the damage was done in a night, it will take months to make things better — and that calls for patience and money. However, we are seeing signs of progress. We just need to be patient a little longer.