Scott County Judge James Forbes issued a disaster emergency proclamation on Wednesday, September 2. This, following days of torrential rainfall and damaging floods.
Forbes has been working out in the county surveying damage and on the scene of multiple swift water rescues.
“I want to say how much I appreciate our law enforcement, county and state, Boles Fire Department, and the state wildlife officers. They accomplished a very difficult and long swift water rescue in Boles,” Forbes stated on Tuesday.
“Thankfully, there was no loss of life. We were lucky to have our first responders there within minutes. Everyone worked together and came up with plan to secure stranded woman. It could have had a much different outcome,” added Forbes.
He also credited the people of the county for heeding the warning to avoid water covered roadways.
Seven to twelve inches of rain fell in the Scott County area since last Saturday, and Forbes dubbed the county as the “epicenter” when it came to destruction from flooding.
Both county and city residents are asked to call their respective office so that damages can be further assessed. The initial assessment and damage reports prompted Forbes to issue an emergency declaration on Wednesday, September 2.
“One of the bridges will cost around $100k to repair.” Forbes went on to estimate the total damage to the county at a half million dollars.
As he continues making an assessment, Judge Forbes is prioritizing the work that needs to be done. County work crews are working to make roads passable. He concluded, “a lot of roads are unpassable, some are just rough but passable. So, we are prioritizing what work needs to be done.”
