Assessment teams traveled in areas of the state Wednesday that earlier had been inaccessible to inspect damage from weeks of flooding and oversee the cleanup process.
The Arkansas River continued receding, allowing some homeowners to return to their houses this week for the first time since the flooding began in early May. The entire length of the river is now below flood stage, down from its highest level since flooding in May 1990.
Jefferson County Office of Emergency Management crews helped organize cleanup efforts and sent church volunteer groups to tear out carpeting and remove drywall from homes Wednesday. Up to 4 feet of water had soaked homes in Island Harbor Estates in Pine Bluff, office coordinator Karen Blevins said.
"It's bad," she said of the damage. "They are having to cut walls out and spray disinfectant on everything."
More than 35 residents in Wright received tetanus shots Wednesday as a precaution as they worked in previously flooded areas.
In western Arkansas, Crawford County Office of Emergency Management coordinator Dennis Gilstrap said road crews had found scores of washed-out county roads and damaged culverts.
"They are going to be busy for a while repairing those," Gilstrap said.
He said some farm fields remained underwater, and farmers continued moving cattle to higher ground to feed.
"We had a few banks along the river compromised and a couple of small landslides that affected some roads," he said.
Gilstrap said he was sure that Crawford County would meet the level of uninsured damage needed to seek state and federal disaster aid.
Damage in counties must equal or surpass $3.56 per person to qualify for federal or state aid. That means Crawford County, with a population of 61,948, must have $220,535 in uninsured damage to receive aid.
"I'm sure we're going to get that," he said. "The Van Buren baseball complex was all underwater, and we had a landslide take out a waterline. I feel comfortable we'll have damages of at least half a million dollars."
David Hudson, the county judge of Sebastian County, said he has met with first responders, police chiefs and fire chiefs in the county to discuss cleanup work. He said his county roads fared well during the flooding, but a bridge in Lavaca sustained about $10,000 in damage.
He said four or five homes in the Riverland area of Fort Smith were damaged by about 6 inches of water inside.
In Ozark, the Arkansas River remained a selling point for the Mi Casita restaurant on Driftwood Lane.
The restaurant is about 40 yards from the river but was never in danger from flooding, employee Oscar Gallegos said.
"It's back to normal, but it's flowing fast," he said of the river. "We get people calling to see if we are open. They come and eat and watch all the big logs come down the river."
Despite the lower river, the water is still flowing rapidly, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has kept a small-craft advisory in effect. The Corps will lift the safety advisory once the water flow dips below 70,000 cubic feet per second,
In Fort Smith, the river still flowed at 133,000 cubic feet per second Wednesday, and in Little Rock, it was at 230,000 cubic feet per second.
Crews also continued their assessment of flood damage along the Red River. Lafayette Office of Emergency Management coordinator Danny Ormand said the water hasn't yet receded enough inside the levee systems to allow officials access to some areas.
State Desk on 06/11/2015