Virginia’s transportation secretary has ordered an internal review of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge project to determine whether the replacement of the span contributed to ruinous flooding in late June.
The new bridge, which carries the Capital Beltway over the Potomac River, has been cited by residents as a cause for a devastating swell June 25 that swept into Fairfax County’s Huntington area. At this point, however, there is no firm data to bear out that hypothesis.
The event damaged about 150 houses, swamped basements with sewage-infested water and displaced scores of homeowners.
According to a letter sent late last week by Pierce R. Homer, the state’s top transportation official, both VDOT and the bridge project’s staff are conducting the probe, the results of which will be evaluated by an independent panel.
Huntington resident Geoff Livingston circulated a petition calling for an independent look into the causes of the flooding that was sent to Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine. He believes pressure from residents motivated the state to initiate the review.
“If the community hadn’t stood up and really pushed hard on the county and the state … I don’t think [the internal review] would have happened,” Livingston said.
The review shouldbe completed and sent to the independent panel by the end of September, according to another letter by Kaine to county supervisors. Fairfax County officials have refused to comment on the potential impact of the bridge project on the disaster, pending the results of a separate review by the Army Corps of Engineers.
A project spokesman would not comment on the matter, and referred questions to VDOT. A bridge project official has said the work “had a negligible impact” on Cameron Run’s flooding. County building inspectors assessed about $3.3 million worth of private property damage in Huntington as a result of the storm.
