With I-40 closed and 5 bridges 'completely gone,' TDOT plans to begin work swiftly

The Tennessee Department of Transportation plans to move quickly with repairs to infrastructure damaged by Hurricane Helene, notably the collapsed potion of Interstate 40 near the Tennessee-North Carolina border and the handful of bridges that have washed away.

The storm left 14 state bridges on state routes closed. Five of those, according to TDOT, are "completely gone":

• Greene County: State routes 107, 350 and 351
• Unicoi County: Interstate 26 at mile marker 39.6
• Washington County: State 81 (Alfred Taylor Bridge)

TDOT inspected more than 100 bridges over the course of 36 hours, the department said in a 5:30 p.m. social media post on X, formerly known as Twitter. Even then, officials still had hundreds more to check.

These are the bridges that remain closed as of Sept. 30:

• Carter County: State routes 159 and 67/91
• Greene County: Birds Bridge on Old Asheville Highway (local)
• Washington County: Snapps, Corby and Jackson (all local)

The state wanted to begin awarding repair contracts as early as Sept. 30, said Will Reid, deputy commissioner of TDOT. However, TDOT had not contracted with any companies as of Monday afternoon, according to TDOT spokesperson Mark Nagi.

"We are still in the debris removal and assessment phase," he said.

How can I help? Here's how to donate to those affected by Hurricane Helene.

I-40 repair a priority for Tennessee and North Carolina

TDOT is working closely with the North Carolina Department of Transportation to repair Interstate 40 between mile markers 443 and 451 near the Tennessee-North Carolina line.

A mudslide on the North Carolina side resulted in a partial collapse of the highway, NCDOT spokesperson Kelse Edwards said. Photos of the dramatic collapse circulated on social media.

Interstate 40, a major thoroughfare through the Southern Appalachians, is closed in both directions:

• I-40 East is closed from mile marker 432 in Tennessee until mile marker 3 in North Carolina.
• I-40 West is closed starting at mile marker 3 in North Carolina through mile marker 435 in Tennessee.

Officials from each state were assessing damage on their respective sides of I-40 this weekend but had no timeline for how long it would take to repair the roadway.

Interstate 26 between mile markers 40 and 43 is another major focus, as well as State Route 81 in Unicoi and Washington counties, Reid said.

"The main focus is reconnecting severed communities," Nagi said. "As water levels fall, we will possibly find more issues that we need to address in terms of road/bridge damage. We are working to get roadways and bridges open as soon as possible."

Allison Kiehl contributed to this story.

Areena Arora , data and investigative reporter for Knox News, can be reached by email at areena.arora@knoxnews.com . Follow her on X @ AreenaArora and on Instagram @areena_news .

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: With I-40 closed and 5 bridges 'completely gone,' TDOT plans to begin work swiftly