Gwinnett reopens flood-damaged road
A section of McDonough Drive near I-85 and Jimmy Carter Boulevard has been reopened, five months after September floods forced its closure.
Lynn Smarr, acting director for Gwinnett Water Resources, said the road was difficult to fix because of a 16-inch sewer force main and a four-inch high pressure natural gas line nearby. The county replaced the rusted-out 60-inch galvanized metal drain pipe and similar connected pipes with reinforced concrete before rebuilding the road, she said.
Federal and state emergency funds should cover about a third of the repair cost of $900,000.
Total damage to road drainage structures in Gwinnett during the flood was about $7.7 million. The Federal Emergency Management Agency said $5.5 million was flood-related and will pay about 75 percent of that cost. The state covers another 10 percent and county storm water funds pay the rest. Smarr said she expects the county to get about $4.7 million from federal and state emergency funds.
“These old metal drainage pipes are common, especially in west Gwinnett,” said County Commission Chairman Charles Bannister. “When they fail under roads, we have no choice but to make repairs immediately and bring them up to current standards.”
