Monday, the U.S. Department of Transportation said it would send an extra $353 million to North Carolina and Tennessee to help them fix their roads and bridges after Hurricane Helene.
This money comes after $167 million was sent to both states after Hurricane Helene destroyed a lot of the area in September.
The new round of money, $250 million, will mostly be used to rebuild I-40. Parts of the road were washed away during the storm, and it is still closed at the border between North Carolina and Tennessee.
At first, the highway was supposed to return in early 2025. However, a piece of asphalt fell off the road along the Pigeon River Gorge last month, and it is now closed permanently.
According to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Hurricane Helene destroyed communities and cut off important roads. “Our Department is committed to helping repair and rebuild local infrastructure in order to support the impacted area’s long-term recovery,” he said in a statement. “The emergency relief funding we’re announcing today will keep this important work going and help the states and communities that have been hit by this disaster in very important ways.”
The rest of the money will be spent on these things:
- $70 million for the Tennessee Department of Transportation to fix up parts of I-40 and I-26
- $7.6 million for the U.S. Forest Service to fix up roads and bridges in National Forests and get rid of dangers.
- $25 million to fix up the Blue Ridge Parkway in the National Park Service
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