Updated Mar 7, 2013 - 12:19 pm
ADOT estimates US 89 federal repair costs at $35 million
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A northern Arizona highway that was destroyed by a landslide will cost the federal government about $35 million to repair, the Arizona Department of Transportation said in a release.
On Tuesday, the federal government released $2 million in aid to begin repairs on US 89 immediately.
"Our budget for emergencies is very limited, and local governments have even greater financial constraints with limited cash available to fund emergencies," said ADOT Deputy Director for Transportation Jennifer Toth in a press release. "This initial allocation serves as a down payment on the overall emergency relief needs for US 89."
ADOT said those funds will go to assessing the stability of the slope and other operations.
"We're currently doing a geo-technical analysis, which is a fancy way of saying that we're putting holes in the ground to monitor the movement of the earth below the roadway," said Timothy Tait, ADOT spokesman.
US 89 is indefinitely closed between the junction with US 89A and State Route 98.
KTAR's Sandra Haros contributed to this report.
