Oklahoma Transportation Commission OKs emergency work

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – The Oklahoma Transportation Commission has declared an emergency to expedite nearly $3 million in contracts to repair damage caused by heavy flooding in recent weeks.

The commission voted unanimously on Tuesday to authorize five separate contracts, including about $1.3 million to stabilize a rock slide in the Arbuckle Mountains that has shut down the northbound lanes of Interstate 35. That contract will include securing the rock face with giant bolts and disposing of about 14,000 tons of rock that slid onto the shoulder after the heavy June storms.

Other contracts are to repair flood-damaged roadways in Carter, Jefferson, Stephens and Bryan counties in southern Oklahoma.

Oklahoma Department of Transportation Director Mike Patterson says the damage from recent storms to state and county roadways could top $30 million.