With the portion of the Raccoon River Valley Trail Bridge that was recently destroyed by a fire in Adel, the leader of the Dallas County Conservation proposes an outlook of the repair timeline.

Director Curt Cable describes that there’s many factors at play with the conservation department needing permits to allow the repair to happen with that section of the trail being in a flood plain, and that it can be an elongated process. He illustrates that it’s going to cost close to $900,000 to fully fix the bridge, elaborating on the places that will need the most attention.

“There’s 150 feet on the east side of that bridge that we got to replace. We got to put in a new abutment and span that length all the way to that first concrete pier where the fire was kind of stopped.”

Cable explains the conservation engineer will be doing preliminary work, but believes the best case scenario is that the bridge will reopen in May of 2026. He reiterates that a lot needs to happen before then, including getting the proper funding. Cable shares that people can give donations, either on the conservation’s website or making checks payable to the Dallas County Conservation Board or the Conservation Foundation. To contribute to the bridge repair, click here.