Hinds Today

U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) announced that the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has approved over $6.85 million in emergency relief grants to cover the costs of repairing and reconstructing federal roadways in Mississippi damaged by flooding, storms, and other events in recent years.

The largest grant, totaling $4.3 million, will support ongoing efforts by the National Park Service to address flood damage from 2020 at the Vicksburg National Military Park and Natchez Trace National Parkway.

“I’m pleased the Federal Highway Administration continues to support work to ensure public safety by restoring the Vicksburg National Military Park and Natchez Trace Parkway even four years after terrible storms caused so much damage,” said Hyde-Smith, ranking member of the Senate Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Subcommittee.

In 2020, Hyde-Smith visited the flood-damaged military park and worked to secure federal commitments to address damages caused by mudslides and erosion following storms. In September 2020, FHWA awarded an initial $8.0 million to begin correcting storm damage at both sites.

Additionally, FHWA is providing $1.2 million to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for continued work at Hillside National Wildlife Refuge in Holmes County, which also sustained significant damage during February 2020 storms.

A third grant worth $1.35 million has been awarded to the Mississippi Department of Transportation to support reopening a State Route 28 steel truss bridge over the Pearl River near Georgetown. The bridge was closed after a collision damaged it in March 2024. It serves as a key traffic link between Copiah and Simpson counties.