Seven roads closed due to rain, flooding

Nearly 10 inches of rain fell in Pike County in the month of December, damaging many roads and closing seven different roads in Pike County, including Nazareth Church, Reid Road, Old Zebulon Road on the dirt portion off Roberts Quarters, Campbell Road, Dripping Rock Road, Bethany Church and Milner Road.’We need the rain to subside and we will get to work on these roads as quickly as possible,’ said county manager John Hanson. ‘It’s just been too much water. We will assess each road and get with DOT on any help they may be able to provide the county. We appreciate all those who have let us know about issues and we have had people on call 24/7 watching the conditions.’ From Dec. 21 to 26, 7.5 inches of rain fell in the area, as recorded by the automated environmental monitoring network at Bledsoe Research Farm in Williamson. On Christmas Eve, 1.95 inches of rain fell with another 1.09 inches on Christmas day. There has been 153 days of rain in 2015, compared to 126 in 2014, 137 in 2013 and only 106 in 2012. County manager Hanson asked that citizens not try to pass barricades. Some of the issues aren’t as visible as others. Milner Road was completely washed out by rainfall but Hanson said it looks like the culvert can be salvaged and the road rebuilt. Old Zebulon Road was flooded by waters from Powder Creek. Damage to other roads has been reported and will be handled as soon as weather conditions allow.