Heavy rains damage Jefferson County roads

Dirt and gravel roads in Jefferson County were damaged by the torrential downpour that hit the area Thursday night.

Jefferson County Engineer Scott Cline said one place southwest of Libertyville received 9.5 inches of rain during an eight-hour stretch that night.

“I’m pretty sure it was well over a 100-year flood for those locations,” Cline said.

Four dirt roads in the county had to close because they were so badly washed out. Water ran over several gravel roads, too, though Cline said none of them had to close.

He said the roads have not been repaired yet, so motorists should use caution when traversing them, especially those in the bottom third of the county, which received the most rain.

“Water went over the roads just about everywhere we had a bridge or culvert,” Cline said. “I noticed on Friday that Cedar Creek was up and out of its banks, but by Sunday afternoon, it was considerably below the banks.”

As of noon Monday, the four roads in the county that are closed are the dirt roads:

Cline said caution should be exercised on damaged, but not closed, portions of Jefferson County roads that are mainly:

The county’s secondary road department is continuing to check on road conditions and make repairs.

Cline said the county will attempt to salvage as much gravel as it can that was washed away to put back on the shoulders of the road.

Engineer transition

Cline is in the last few days of his post as county engineer. He is retiring from the position Wednesday. The new county engineer, DeWayne Heintz of Walford, will begin the following day. Supervisor Daryn Hamilton said he will work with Heintz when he arrives to ensure a smooth transition.

Hamilton said the transition should be fairly easy since Cline is not having to directly oversee any projects at the moment because the county hired Calhoun-Burns & Associates to oversee some bridge projects under construction.