Not far from the riverbank in Fromberg, Lindi O’Brien’s trailer home was raised high enough to avoid major damage. People also want to remove logjams upstream, but that could also create downstream problems, he said. “If that house goes out, it’s a direct threat to county infrastructure,” he said. One house at the confluence of Rosebud Creek and the Stillwater River near Absarokee remained threatened on Monday, Cowger said. Stillwater County officials were still tallying the damage there on Monday, following heavy rains on the weekend that caused the rivers to rise again, said Rich Cowger, the fire chief in Columbus. Eight bridges and seven roads were destroyed, while 16 commercial buildings suffered moderate to major damage, officials said. In Park County - which includes Livingston, Gardiner and Cooke City - a preliminary assessment of 437 structures found three residences were destroyed, 76 had moderate to major damage and another 126 had minor damage. “They’ll have to look at all the resources the park is designed to protect, and try to do this project as carefully as possible, but they’re also going to try to go fairly quickly,” said Brett Hartl, government affairs director at the Center for Biological Diversity. The scope of the damage is still being tallied by Yellowstone officials, but based on other national park disasters, it could take years and carry a steep price tag to rebuild in an environmentally sensitive landscape - with a huge underground plumbing system - where construction season only runs from the spring thaw until the first snowfall. “It’s going to be a summer of adjustments.” “We’ve gotten a lot more done than we thought we would a week ago,” Sholly said. The temporary route also could be used by commercial tour companies that have permits to lead guided visits. That would let employees who work at the park headquarters in Mammoth get to their homes in Gardiner, Sholly said. With no chances for an immediate fix, Sholly said 20,000 tons of material were being hauled in to construct a temporary, alternate route along an old road that runs above the canyon. They’d still be barred from the Lamar Valley, which is famous for its prolific wildlife including bears, wolves and bison that can often be seen from the roadside. The northern loop would give visitors access to popular attractions including Tower Fall and Mammoth Hot Springs. Within two weeks officials plan to also open the northern loop, after previously declaring that it would likely stay closed through the summer season. Only portions of the park that can be accessed along its “southern loop” of roads will be opened initially and access to the park’s scenic backcountry will be for day hikers only. Wednesday, more than a week after more than 10,000 visitors were forced out of the park when the Yellowstone and other rivers went over their banks after being swelled by melting snow and several inches of rainfall. Yellowstone will partially reopen at 8 a.m. There’s still no timetable for repairs to routes between the park and areas of Montana where the recovery is expected to stretch for months. Park officials said Sunday they’ll use $50 million in federal highway money to speed up road and bridge repairs. Yellowstone Superintendent Cam Sholly said the world-renowned park will be able to accommodate fewer visitors for the time being, and it will take more time to restore road connections with some southern Montana communities. (AP) - Most of Yellowstone National Park should reopen within the next two weeks - much faster than originally expected after record floods pounded the region last week and knocked out major roads, federal officials said.
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