GDOT: Hurricanes Helene and Debbie drove major emergency repairs, $200 million maintenance hit

Commissioner McMurray, chair of the State Transportation Board, told the Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee that Georgia Department of Transportation crews and contractors carried out large-scale emergency work after hurricanes Helene and Debbie and that the agency estimates about $200 million in routine‑maintenance budget impact tied to the storms.

The agency reported widespread damage and recovery work: more than 3.2 million cubic yards of debris collected, 719 traffic signals identified as damaged in an initial assessment, more than 16,000 signs replaced and 15,000 sign maintenance actions performed. "We're at 3,200,000 cubic yards of debris as of 2 days ago," McMurray said.

Why it matters: the damage forced GDOT to shift staff and contractor capacity from regular maintenance to emergency response and required state funding so routine activities could continue. McMurray said the governor's proposed budget includes general‑fund additions intended to make the maintenance program whole for this fiscal year.

Details of the response and damage

McMurray described several response categories: debris removal to reopen lanes for emergency and utility crews, traffic‑signal repairs and replacement of damaged signage and repairs to roadway infrastructure, including washed‑out pipes and culverts. He said GDOT coordinated with Georgia Power, electric membership cooperatives and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers when power lines or federal reimbursement were relevant. He said contractors were mobilized using existing on‑call debris contracts so GDOT maintenance crews could return to normal maintenance as quickly as possible.

On traffic signals and signs, McMurray said an initial count left GDOT uncertain about the scale ("over 1,100 signals that we had we didn't know if they even were there anymore") and that field assessments identified 719 damaged signals. He estimated signal repairs at about $3 million and said GDOT called in 10 outside contractors that provided roughly 30 additional bucket trucks at the peak of the response. McMurray also described substantial sign work: "we've replaced over 16,000 signs, and we've done sign maintenance on 15,000 signs in county."

Bridges and local roads

GDOT inspected hundreds of bridges after the storms: McMurray said crews inspected 275 bridges and previously inspected about 120 bridges after Hurricane Debbie. He recounted a washed‑out box culvert on State Route 1609 in Tattnall County and described a separate replacement on State Route 86 in Lawrence County that he said cost $882,000 for that structure and was opened to traffic after the contractor completed work.

Personnel, scope and hauling

McMurray estimated more than 2,000 GDOT employees and contractors worked on the response, contributing roughly 251,000 hours of work. He said GDOT handled 71 requests to assist on off‑system (non‑state) roads, worked on roughly 340 non‑state routes and at the peak operated 449 trucks hauling debris to 41 debris sites around the state. He highlighted local work such as rebuilding roughly 150 unimproved roads in Jenkins County.

Budget context

McMurray told the committee the combined maintenance impact of the two recent storms is "a little over $200 million," and that the governor and the General Assembly recognized storm costs and other needs in last year’s amended budget. He summarized recent and proposed appropriations that affect GDOT operations, including local‑roads assistance and freight program funding. He thanked the governor and appropriators for adding state general funds intended to offset emergency expenditures so routine maintenance and safety work (guardrails, patching, mowing and traffic management) can continue.

What was not decided

No formal vote or motion occurred on the record during this presentation. McMurray and the committee discussed clarification about how much of the emergency spending had already been deployed; McMurray said a portion of the $200 million had already been paid out and that the appropriation was intended to cover those rapid deployments.

Next steps

McMurray said GDOT will continue execution of repairs while working with federal partners on reimbursement where eligible. He reiterated an intent to move budgeted local assistance quickly to cities and counties where funds were appropriated with no local match required.

Ending

McMurray closed by thanking committee members for their support and emphasizing the agency's continuing recovery and maintenance needs.