As Red River recedes, North Dakota faces major road and bridge repairs

The Red River that runs through Fargo, N.D., may finally be tamed, but it could be weeks before the body of water cowers back to its original state. Cass County officials made the announcement on April 15, stating that the Red River will take awhile to recede due to breakouts by the Sheyenne River.

County officials were planning on traveling to the state capital to ask lawmakers to pour more money into the transportation budget to help pay for hundreds of miles of county roads and bridges that were damaged by the late winter flooding. Many are calling for the revival of Gov. John Hoeven’s plan to feed $120 million into transportation.

“Boy, what we are seeing is significant,” Cass County Engineer Keith Berndt told INFORUM, referring to the damage caused by the flooding to local roads and bridges. “It’s not going to be hundreds of thousands (of dollars), it’s going to be millions.”

With federal stimulus dollars expected to roll in, state lawmakers considered keeping North Dakota’s $1 billion surplus in reserve in case there was an emergency. Cass County Commissioner Scott Wagner said now is the time to tap that rainy-day chest. “It’s raining in North Dakota,” he told INFORUM. “If there is any time we need this money, it’s now.”