Contact: FHWA.PressOffice@dot.gov
Tel.: (202) 366-0660

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) today announced the immediate availability of $2 million in “quick release” Emergency Relief (ER) funds to the U.S. Forest Service in Puerto Rico. The funds are to offset the cost of repairs to vital roadways in the El Yunque National Forest caused by Tropical Storm Ernesto last month. The funds will be used to reopen federally owned roads that were made impassable by heavy rains, strong winds, landslides, and severe flooding from the storm.

“The emergency funding we’re sending to Puerto Rico will help quickly reopen and re-establish the transportation network in the El Yunque National Forest,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “Following the damage caused by Tropical Storm Ernesto, we’re working urgently to reconnect a tropical rainforest popular with tourists and visitors and make the infrastructure more resilient to future weather events.”

“The Federal Highway Administration is working closely with the U.S. Forest Service to repair the damage caused by Tropical Storm Ernesto,” said Acting Federal Highway Administrator Kristin White. “Emergency relief funding helps communities swiftly receive federal funds to more quickly repair impacted areas and restore access.”

On Thursday, August 15, 2024, Tropical Storm Ernesto hit the U.S. territory of 3.2 million residents dumping more than 10 inches of rain on parts of the island. In addition to the heavy rain, Ernesto’s 60-mile-per-hour winds caused trees to fall on public roads, roofs on houses were blown off, people were stuck in floodwaters either in their vehicles or in their homes, and hundreds of thousands were left without power.

U.S. Forest Service workers and those from FHWA’s Eastern Federal Lands Highway Division are currently making critical eligible repairs removing downed trees, overhead hazards, and debris from six roadways and five trails. They’re also working to remove unwanted material from landslides triggered by the storm and are stabilizing adjacent slopes temporarily to restore safe travel along impacted routes and trails. These ER funds will allow the U.S. Forest Service and the Eastern Federal Lands Highway Division to act more quickly to fund eligible repairs to damaged roadways, which are preventing emergency vehicles, utility crews, homeowners, and contractors working on repairs from previous disasters from accessing the area. It will also help to avoid delays and alleviate impacts to existing budgets. Damage is currently estimated at approximately $6.5 million.

FHWA’s Emergency Relief program provides funding to states, territories, Tribes, and Federal Land Management Agencies for highways and bridges damaged by natural disasters or catastrophic events. These “quick release” Emergency Relief funds are an initial installment of funds toward restoring this essential transportation link. Additional funds needed to repair damage in the El Yunque National Forest will be supported by the Emergency Relief program through nationwide funding allocations.

The FHWA Emergency Relief program complements Bipartisan Infrastructure Law programs and provisions by encouraging agencies to identify and implement measures to incorporate resilience in the design, restoration, and repair of damaged infrastructure, to better withstand future damage from climate change and future weather events.

More information about FHWA’s Emergency Relief program can be found online at https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/programadmin/erelief.cfm.

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