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Pike County Judge explains FEMA process, warns major repairs could take years
Summary
Pike County Judge/Executive outlined the county's reliance on FEMA for post-flood repairs, estimated tens of millions in damage, described engineering needs and funding shares, and warned that many permanent repairs will require lengthy FEMA review and approval.
Pike County Judge/Executive Judge Jones told the fiscal court on Aug. 18 that FEMA’s review and approval process is delaying permanent repairs to roads and bridges damaged in recent storms and floods and that some projects could take years to complete.
“Since the February flood, the Pike County fiscal court has received exactly $0 from FEMA,” Judge Jones said during a lengthy presentation explaining the county’s recovery process. He told the court FEMA had approved only 10 public assistance projects in Kentucky so far and that the county has more than 3,000 damaged sites on roads, bridges and infrastructure to be assessed.
Jones said many repairs will require engineering work to correct embankment and slope failures — including drilling and steel cribbing — and that those specialized repairs are expensive and constrained by limited contractor capacity. He gave a rough example for one site, Marshall’s Branch at Longford, saying a contractor’s estimate was “6 to $700,000” and that FEMA typically covers 75% of eligible costs, the state 12% and the county 13%.
“The big problem is most of this damage to roads, it’s not simply just going in and repaving,” Jones said. He listed several large projects the court is tracking, including Middle Elk Bridge and Woodman Summer Bridge, and warned that South River Road required a substantial permanent repair after a previous fix failed.
Tim Fields, the county’s deputy emergency management director and applicant agent with FEMA, told the court assessors are returning scopes and costs for projects and that some projects may be consolidated. Fields said the county is receiving scope-and-cost packages from FEMA and that the county sometimes must return a scope that underestimates local needs so the two sides can negotiate increased funding.
Judge Jones said the county has a staffed Emergency Operations Center with assessors on site and that he will update the court publicly once FEMA completes its assessments and projects move toward obligation, which is the agency’s confirmation that funds have been approved. He noted that obligation does not always mean immediate payment; state payment cycles and final construction-completion requirements typically follow the obligation step.
The court also approved routine road department work orders and a roster of completed and scheduled tasks; Judge Jones said the lists are posted on PAC TV’s Facebook page for public review. Road supervisor updates in the meeting described mowing, pothole patching and ditch cleaning on many county routes.
Judge Jones urged residents to recognize the limits of county finances and federal processes and said the court is attempting to avoid making repairs that could later be rejected by FEMA and therefore render the county ineligible for reimbursement.
