WINTER STORM COULD CAUSE PROBLEMS FOR COUNTY ROADS

  

Washington County officials say last week’s severe winter weather could lead to problems in the near future for county roads.

County Engineer Ross McCall told commissioners at their meeting Tuesday that the roads suffered “pretty good damage” stemming from the storm.  While the public may not immediately notice these damages and feel the need to call them in, he warned that they could become a big problem in three weeks to a month if left untreated.

McCall explained that the cycle of water freezing and melting on the roads is the main reason for these issues.

 

McCall said road crews are trying to be as “preventative” as possible, and will be documenting damaged areas in the coming weeks.

 

McCall said the county’s Geographic Information System (GIS) staff planned out routes for treating bridges prior to last week’s weather.  He said a full plan to pretreat over 150 county bridges was carried out in less than four hours.

Trucks were loaded and stored under cover in the shop at the Engineering and Development Services (EDS) facility, and crews were sent out shortly before conditions deteriorated.  McCall said while there were a few lessons to be learned, he considered the planning and execution processes successful, adding that all employees returned safely.