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Helper seeks repairs to flood‑damaged Price River restoration; council backs project funding request
Summary
City and county representatives asked the council to help repair Price River restoration phases damaged by post‑fire flash floods. The council approved the request and discussed federal EWP and outdoor recreation funding avenues.
Eric McCully, appearing for the city of Helper, briefed the council on flood damage to previously completed phases of Price River restoration work. McCully said large post‑fire debris flows and flash floods following the Bear fire scoured engineered stream features, destabilized banks and moved riprap and boulders installed during earlier restoration phases.
McCully said the most urgent needs are to re‑establish engineered structures in the phases nearest Helper — notably Phase 4 — to restore channel stability, maintain recreation access and protect angling habitat. He described the event as a rapid, high‑volume flow that overwhelmed some of the earlier work and said the design team intends to rebuild the features with improvements to increase resilience.
Council members asked about other funding sources. A member observed that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Emergency Watershed Protection program (EWP) or other county‑led proposals might match the work; McCully said Carbon County would have to lead any EWP request and that the county had not chosen to pursue EWP for this work. McCully and council members also noted the city and county were pursuing outdoor‑recreation corridor planning funds and other partner support.
The council voted to approve the project request and to move forward with the city and county as partners. The motion passed with no recorded objections.
