(L-R) are Keith Hegney, director; Bob Olson, construction oversight; and Chad Kastner, street superintendent, all of the city of Surrey’s public works department.

Case Construction Equipment has awarded the $25,000 Dire States Equipment Grant to Surrey, N.D., for much-needed road drainage revitalization and flood control projects throughout the city. Due to years of sudden urban planning and insufficient funding, several drainage-ways have filled with years of sediment, restricting natural run-off of storm water and yearly snowmelt. There also are several roads that require drainage ditches to be installed to prevent flooding.

The poor drainage has wreaked havoc on roadways throughout Surrey — costing large portions of the city's yearly budget to maintain. In addition to flooding and infrastructure damage, the drainage issues have caused several areas in town to collect and pool standing water, creating a public health concern.

The 2018 grant will provide the township with $25,000 in free equipment rental for the project through Case dealer Titan Machinery.

“This grant will allow us to finally address some of these major drainage concerns in our city,” said Keith Hegney, public works director, Surrey, N.D. “This will vastly improve our community's drainage issues by stopping flooding and saving our city's roadways by removing vegetation and soil, grading the land surface and constructing drainage networks to assure natural drainage. Misdirected storm water runoff can and will continue to cause major damage to our city's infrastructure if we don't take care of it. Now we can.”

“Dire States is all about making an impact on communities that have struggled under the weight of their crumbling infrastructure,” said Michel Marchand, vice president — North America, Case Construction Equipment. “Drainage control and flood mitigation are essential when it comes to positioning a city for future growth, and these projects in Surrey, North Dakota, will improve multiple facets of the community and its operations. Making a difference at the local level has been the focus of the Dire States Grant since it launched three years ago.”

The grant was awarded after soliciting submissions nationwide from local communities to use heavy equipment to improve a critical piece of local infrastructure. A committee of representatives from Case chose the winner.

For more information on Dire States, and to see how the grant is being put to use by previous winners, visit DireStates.com.

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