Governor was sued by the two counties. In April, Phil Bryant and other agencies sued Gov. The counties claimed that Bryant’s proclamation to close bridges in some counties and others is beyond the authority he has under the emergency management law. The two counties also requested a temporary restraining or order to close the bridges while the case is being considered. William Singletary, Hinds County Chancery Judge, dismissed the motion to reopen bridges and suggested that the case might not be admissible moving forward. Singletary stated that “this court cannot determine whether there is a substantial likelihood” that petitioners will prevail on merits. After concluding that the timber bridges of Mississippi had not been properly inspected, the Federal Highway Administration ordered a series of Mississippi bridge inspections. In 2018, and 2019, the federal agency ordered a re-inspection. The majority of closures in the last year have been due to this federally mandated inspection. According to the Office of State Aid Road Construction, 526 bridges owned locally are currently closed. The vast majority of these are timber bridges that were closed in the last year. Many county officials, including those from Jasper and Smith counties, claim that the closures have caused disruption to industry. According to the complaints, they mirror those of residents and county officials who spoke to Mississippi Today. They expressed concern about the availability of emergency-service personnel, as well as the additional time required to navigate around detours. The closure of these bridges has resulted in widespread and severe hardship for the residents of these counties. These hardships include the rerouting school buses, which caused inconveniences for parents and their children, the increased risk to citizens in the case of emergency medical need and the ability to respond by emergency personnel; law enforcement being able respond to these emergency situations; and firefighter and rescue personnel being delayed in cases of a major fire.” J.D. Sanford is an attorney at Marc E. Brand & Associates. The firm represents the counties. The governor responded to the lawsuit. Bryant blamed the county supervisors for failing to properly maintain the bridges. He said that he was just following the recommendations made by independent inspectors who are helping the state meet the federal mandate. Bryant stated that he refused to “sit idly by” and put his life at risk. “Had counties done what they were supposed to, I wouldn’t have had to exercise my authority which would have protected the people who elected me.”_x000D