State road crews in Pike focus on flood cleanup

Routine maintenance is suspended on state roads in Pike County while crews concentrate on critical cleanup and repair work following flash flooding in parts of the county on Saturday, July 17.

   Highway District 12 has three maintenance facilities in Pike County, on Dix Fork (Canada Crew), Dry Fork of Shelby (Shelby Crew), and on KY 632 between Kimper and Phelps (Phelps Crew). All crews were activated about 5 p.m. Saturday and have been on the job from daylight until dark since that time

   “We are working during every available hour of daylight,” said Sam Hale, Engineering Branch Manager for Pike, Letcher, and Knott counties. “Floods are not like dealing with snow and ice. We can run snowplows all night, but when you’re trying to repair pavement, clean out culverts and drain tiles, or pull ditchlines, you can’t work in the dark. It’s too dangerous.”

   The crew from Allen Maintenance in Floyd County even got in on the recovery efforts. Although their roads were spared during the weekend storms, they came out on Sunday to haul water for Pike County Emergency Management Services and again on Monday.

State crews started assisting county road workers on Monday, July 19. Highway District 12 brought in workers from Letcher County, Allen Maintenance in Floyd County, Knott and Martin counties, and Johnson County. Highway District 10, headquartered at Jackson in Breathitt County, loaned equiopment and sent a crew on Tuesday, July 20, from Lee County Maintenance.

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