Storm Damage Estimates Rise
Herald Staff Reports

This week, two weeks after flash-flooding ripped out numerous roads and bridges in the area, officials in the hardesthit towns were revising upwards their estimates of repair costs, and putting summer road projects on hold in order to deal with more pressing repairs.

Meanwhile, local and state officials are urging residents who with private property damage to register losses with their town. Reports must be filed for individuals to be eligible for lowinterest loans, should they become available, from the Small Business Administration.

In Randolph

Randolph's official estimate of damage from the July 11 flood mounted to $745,457 last week as Public Works Supervisor John Rotter prepared to meet with FEMA officials to get their approval for repairs.

Permanent repairs have to wait for official approval, or the town might forfeit federal aid, which could amount to 75% of the cost of repairing the roads.

As of early this week, all Randolph roads were back in service, with three exceptions: Howard Hill, Clover Hill Road, and West Street.

The other roads that sustained the most damage were Mason Road, Tatro Hill, North Randolph Road, Fish Hill, Hebard Hill (two locations), Scenic Drive, and Pinnacle Road.

Repairs on Tatro Hill and one of the Hebard Hill locations have been completed, according to a chart. The most expensive by far to fix will be Mason Road. That was supposed to be paved this summer, but it may not be.

The biggest questions revolve around Howard Hill and West Street.

A half-mile of Howard Hill was completely washed away, leaving a deep trench.

Rotter said he has heard the rumors floating around town that the road might not be rebuilt. However, he said, "At this time, I don't see this as an option."

Although the loss of the road does not strand any homes without service, that road has served as a mail route, he noted.

He said he hoped that some service can be restored there before winter. The job would have to be contracted out.

As to West Street, just one short section is owned by Randolph. Unfortunately, it's the worst section. The rest of the road is owned by Brookfield (the top) and Braintree (the bottom).

Selectboards of the three towns were scheduled to meet Wednesday night on other matters, and it is expected they will discuss a joint contract to fix West Street, which has a considerable volume of traffic.

Rotter said he hopes traffic will be restored there by winter, as well.

$1M in Bethel?

Bethel Town Manager Dell Cloud, who came up with a $500,000 estimate for storm damage on July 12, this week said costs will more likely fall in the $750,000 to $1-million range.

The most expensive repair will be resetting the concrete-block retaining wall along Gilead Brook Road. The block wall- installed in the past to keep Gilead Brook from eating away at the road, was badly damaged two weeks ago.

Although roads in Bethel are now all open, many remain in "rough" shape, and won't be fully repaired until state and federal officials approve the repairs. The state, for example, must do a "hydraulic evaluation" before the town can replace a culvert.

Cloud said he thought most of the roadwork in Bethel would be done by October, with some of the work contracted being out.

Cloud hopes to get the roads in shape by winter, since it would be difficult to plow without "decent shoulders" on the roads. As it is, damaged roads remain "vulnerable" to further erosion, he said.

Some projects, including the retaining wall on Gilead, might not get a permanent fix until next year, he said.

Cloud said 24 residents had registered private damage reports with the town, and he encouraged those who had not yet filed reports to get them in, for SBA loan eligibility.

In Brookfield

In Brookfield, Road Crew Foreman David Gilderdale said he and the selectboard had toured affected areas, and estimated damages at just over $720,000.

The worst damage in Brookfield is on West Street, which remains closed, with a 30-foot gully in one place. That will be a three-town project, as noted above.

Gilderdale said that other closures- including one-third of a mile of Twin Pond Road, its bridge, and the Taylor Hill Bridge- would likely be repaired this year.

The storm has forced the town to redo its summer schedule. Gilderdale said a number of maintenance projects probably won't get done, but the crew still plans to help the school put in a new parking lot.

Even before the rains of July 11, Brookfield was struggling with high overtime costs for its crew. According to minutes of the selectboard's July 9 meeting, the town budgeted 750 hours of overtime for the three-person crew, and OT hours were already at 900 hours, before the rains came.

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