Remember the Duluth deluge? County's repairs are finally finished

More than three years after floodwaters tore through the Duluth area, St. Louis County has finished the final project on its fix-it list.

A ceremony Thursday marked the completion of the Highland Street project, which includes a new bridge over Keene Creek – one of many creeks in the area that flooded on June 19 and 20 in 2012.

A statement from the county says that altogether there were 843 sites that needed repairs. The Highland Street project alone was a $12 million undertaking. At 183 feet, the Keene Creek bridge is the longest of its type in Minnesota, the county says.

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Public works director Jim Foldesi tells Fox 21 the flood repairs were a learning experience for the county because it showed where the weak spots in the road and bridge system were.

While Duluth and St. Louis County have finished their flood repairs, MPR News notes there is still one unfinished project at the state level: replacement of a two-mile section of Highway 210 in Jay Cooke State Park in Carlton County. The road was damaged by a mudslide during the flood.

Completion of that project is still more than a year off, though MnDot will provide an update to the public next week.

Jay Cooke State Park is open and is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year.

Here's a look back at some of the damage during the 2012 flood:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tiwiaI3Fjac