Colorado Flood Response

500-year floods ripped through Colorado in September. Governor John Hickenlooper promised the public that the roads would be open by Dec. 1st. The floods destroyed 250 miles of roads and 50 bridges. They washed out Hwy 34, Hwy 36, and Hwy 7, cuttting off several communities. Reconnecting these towns before winter became a top priority. Warm mix was used on a portion of all of these roads to combat the cool temperatures and long hauls.

Coulson Excavating, Asphalt Specialties, and Aggregate Industries all utilized Evotherm supplied by Suncor Energy for repair work. The highway dept described the repair as "pioneering". Permanent reconstruction to be completed in 2014 will have an estimated price tag of $250 million.

Local contractors and contractors from surrounding states pulled togather and accomplished this feat in record time. Most people said they could not do it in the time the governor promised. They had to move over 500 million tons of material and pave with nearly 100 thousand tons of warm mix. The Colorado DOT opened US 36 on November 4th (one month early!), US 34 on November 21st and Highway 7 on November 26th. While nobody wants to see disasters like this, the asphalt industry proves time and time again that we have what it takes to respond quickly and professionally, with a pioneering spirit.

Author: Mike O'Leary