Superior Construction is no stranger to emergency road and bridge work.
Based in Florida, the company is often called out after hurricanes and other disasters to restore transportation infrastructure.
But the project the company faced September 30, two days after Hurricane Ian struck southwest Florida, was different for its severity. The Sanibel Causeway, the only link between Sanibel Island and the mainland, had washed out in multiple areas along the 3-mile thoroughfare.
{Related Content: Before and after photos of the Sanibel Causeway work}
“It was definitely shocking,” says Ryan Hamrick, division manager at Superior. “You see the pictures from the news coverage and aerial footage of the damage, but photos and videos really don't do it justice. When you're able to put your feet on the ground and see firsthand, it gives you a new respect for the power of these storms. And in this situation, storm surge, to see what it can do to the things that we build every day. It's pretty eye-opening.”
Though the task looked daunting when representatives of Superior, its joint-venture partner de Moya Group and the Florida Department of Transportation surveyed the damage that day in September, a singleness of purpose took hold:
Land access to the devastated communities must be restored as quickly as possible.
