Feds sending NC another $1 billion in emergency aid for Helene road repairs
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- Federal government grants $1.15B to NCDOT for Hurricane Helene recovery efforts
- FHWA funds represent largest single emergency relief grant in agency's history
- NCDOT estimates $5B total repair cost; expects 80% covered by federal sources
The federal government is sending another $1.15 billion to the N.C. Department of Transportation to help it rebuild roads and bridges in Western North Carolina damaged by the remnants of Hurricane Helene a year ago.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced Tuesday that the money will come from the Federal Highway Administration’s emergency relief program. The agency had already pledged $400 million to NCDOT from that fund for Helene reconstruction earlier this year.
“President Trump promised no North Carolinian would be left behind. Today’s announcement reflects that continued commitment to get America building again,” Duffy said in a written statement. “We will not rest until the communities devastated by Hurricane Helene are made whole again.”
The $1.15 billion announced Tuesday is the largest single grant from the FHWA’s emergency relief program in the program’s history, according to the agency. The announcement comes just days before the one-year anniversary of a storm that did more damage to roads and bridges in North Carolina than any other in history.
In a statement late Tuesday, NCDOT said it is “grateful” for Duffy’s announcement.
“We have a lot of work ahead on permanent infrastructure repairs,” the statement said, “and we know this allocation will help us keep the recovery moving forward and avoid disruption to non-Helene related operations.”
NCDOT will spend billions on Helene aftermath
NCDOT estimates it will spend nearly $5 billion on repairs and reconstruction as a result of the storm. That’s more than five times the cost of all previous storms combined since 2016, which includes two hurricanes, Matthew and Florence, that devastated the eastern part of the state.
NCDOT is counting on the federal government to cover about 80% of those costs. In June, the department said it expected to eventually receive $1.15 billion from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, FEMA, and nearly $2.9 billion from the Federal Highway Administration.
The state’s share of the cost under normal formulas is an estimated $922 million. That money would have to come from NCDOT’s fund for repaving, repairs and other work to maintain the state’s existing highways, according to Secretary of Transportation Joey Hopkins.
Besides money, the Trump administration helped smooth the way for NCDOT to be able to quarry stone from Pisgah National Forest to rebuild four miles of Interstate 40 through the Pigeon River Gorge. Mining the stone just across the river from where it will be needed will save tens of millions of dollars and shorten the construction process by two to three years, state officials have said.
Sean McMaster, who was confirmed as Federal Highway Administrator last week, is expected to visit the Pigeon River Gorge later this week to see the I-40 construction site first hand.
This story was originally published September 23, 2025 at 12:45 PM.
