Seaford—The Department of Transportation reports that on Monday, July 24, 2006, crews began repairing the bridges on Route 13A and Route 20 that were washed out by flooding on June 25, 2006. In just one month emergency contracts were designed, bid, awarded and work was underway.

Over the past month, DelDOT was worked to design, bid and award two emergency contracts for the replacement of precast culverts and the bridge reconstruction for bothbridges. Specifically, the bridges each have two contracts, one for the precast culvert and one for the actual bridge reconstruction. The precast culverts were awarded ahead of the construction project to expedite manufacturing, which ensured that the bridges would be repaired at a faster pace.

The bid for precast elements for the bridge on Route 20 over Horse Pen Branch was awarded to Terre Hill Concrete Products of Terre Hill, Pennsylvania for $128,000. The bridge reconstruction contract was awarded to George and Lynch, Inc. of Dover at a cost of $394,000. The bridge will be built over 60 days and should be completed by September 22, 2006.

The bid for precast elements for the bridge on Route 13A bridge over Morgan Branch was awarded to Gillespie Precast of Chestertown, Maryland for $57,000. The bridge reconstruction contract was awarded to George and Lynch, Inc. of Dover at a cost of $322,000. The bridge will be constructed over 50 days and will be reopened by September 12, 2006, weather permitting.

These costs were reasonable, which undoubtedly saved both time and money for the state and its residents.

At this time, only the bridge at Craigs Mill Pond remains closed. DelDOT is currently determining if it can utilize an existing contract or if it will need to put this work on a new contract. The decision will determine the length of time the bridge will be closed. At the most, it will be closed two to three more months.

In mid-July, the bridge on Route 20 over Chapel Branch, near Penco Corporation and the bridge on Route 20 over Cool Branch, east of Seaford, both of which were severely damages reopened to traffic.

As a recap of the Seaford flooding event, over 30 roads were flooded when a severe storm system dumped nearly 13 inches of rain within a 24 hour period in western areas of Seaford on Sunday, June 25. Initial inspection determined that nearly half the roads were reopened once the rain stopped and the water receded, including the Route 13 corridor in this area. However, 12 roads were damaged (primarily areas of Route 20 east and west of Seaford) and four bridges washed out due to the floods. DART Bus Route 212 was suspended and Woodbridge High School was opened as a temporary shelter for anyone needing to evacuate their home.

To date, DelDOT has spent a total of $1,824,263.90 to repair and reconstruct bridges and roads due to the June floods. Because a state of emergency was declared for this event, Sussex County will receive disaster assistance funding through the Federal Environmental Management Agency for restoration. Likewise, because some of the damaged roadways are federally-eligible roads, the Federal Highway Adminstration will likely provide some disaster funding. Although exact amounts are not available at this time, DelDOT should receive funds from both entities in order to recoup costs associated with repairing and replacing public access roadways and bridges.

Repair Work
Route 20 West, over Horse Pen Branch | Route 20 West, over Chapel Branch
Route 20 West, over Chapel Branch | Route 13A in Blades | Tubbs Branch Rt 20 East
Tubbs Branch Route 20 East