Florida: FDOT Picks Up More Than 100,000 Cubic Yards of Debris Within Two Weeks Following Hurricane Idalia
The Floridant/10245172

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. ~ The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) has been working hard to bring relief to the Big Bend communities affected by Hurricane Idalia. Governor Ron DeSantis praised the FDOT for their efforts in expediting hurricane recovery.

"It's important to remove debris as quickly as possible to make sure businesses can reopen and communities can rebuild," said Governor DeSantis. "The Florida Department of Transportation has done a great job once again to support hurricane recovery."

FDOT Secretary Jared W. Perdue, P.E., expressed his pride in the FDOT team for their hard work and dedication in helping those affected by the storm. "Under Governor DeSantis' leadership, FDOT was empowered to help the communities we serve beyond what is normally expected of us," said Perdue.

Prior to landfall, FDOT took action to ensure the safety of Gulf Coast communities by suspending tolls and pre-staging supplies, equipment, and nearly 700 team members. Over 100 Bridge Inspectors were deployed throughout the state and quickly cleared over 1,000 bridges through the main impacted areas within 18 hours after landfall. Anticipating power outages, nearly 1,100 generators were strategically staged around the area of landfall to timely restore traffic signals following the storm.

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FDOT teams inspected and conducted cut-and-toss operations on 25,000 miles of state-owned roads within one day after landfall in order to offer assistance to fiscally constrained counties that requested support. In Madison County alone, over 10,000 downed trees made a 15-mile stretch on I-10 impassable; however 27 four-person FDOT crews quickly responded and cleared all travel lanes within 12 hours after impact.

To support rural communities, FDOT has cleared all bus routes in Hamilton, Madison, Suwanee and Taylor counties which allowed all schools in all 67 counties to be reopened less than one week after landfall. Additionally, FDOT provided equipment and personnel in Horseshoe Beach for sorting and processing debris quicker so that rebuilding could continue without delay.

To date, FDOT crews have picked up over 100,000 cubic yards of debris within two weeks of Hurricane Idalia making landfall and are continuing their efforts with debris pickup in seven fiscally constrained counties who requested assistance. For more information related to local emergency response efforts visit fdot.gov/idalia for county links available on their website.

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