Could be weeks before Oklahoma’s Port of Catoosa is reopened after floods

For three weeks, Oklahoma’s Port of Catoosa has been closed due to the flooding of the Arkansas River.  And now officials say there could be an obvious impact on not just Oklahoma’s economy but those in at least 20 other states.

“We are shut down on the waterway. Now the Port of Catoosa is in business we are still getting trucks,” said  David Yarbrough, Director of the Port. “Navigation takes a backseat to flood control.”

He was interviewed by KOTV news in Tulsa and explained the port usually moves two and a half million tons of products and goods a year. But the flooding resulted in a shutdown and Yarbrough says the impact is being felt on surrounding states that ship or receive goods from the port.

The waterways along the Port of Catoosa are usually brimming with energy, packed with boats, goods coming in and out of town but on Tuesday things are unusually quiet.

 “If goods can’t move on the water. Whether it is wheat or soybeans or steel coming to Tulsa, they have to ship it by truck or by rail,” said Yarbrough.

And that temporary change could impact the state’s economy in a big way.

“This is the cheapest way to ship the things that we ship. So, now these folks have to find other ways to move their goods,” said Yarbrough, “You won’t see it right away but overtime the ripple effects of that transportation interruption. It jams up the highways and it costs more to ship those goods.”

Based on the Corps of Engineers projections, Yarbrough says it could be weeks before the waterway reopens.

“This setback on the transportation side is just that, a setback, it is something that we can overcome,” said Yarbrough.

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