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State and city departments prepare for road repairs needed in aftermath of snowstorm

4 hours 17 minutes 55 seconds ago Thursday, January 23 2025 Jan 23, 2025 January 23, 2025 10:04 PM January 23, 2025 in News
Source: WBRZ

BATON ROUGE - While efforts to clear roads of snow continue, state and city departments prepare for repairs needed in the aftermath. 

The Arkansas Department of Transportation brought 70 workers and 16 snow plows to assist in tackling the snow across southern Louisiana. 

ARDOT said Louisiana is a unique challenge. 

"We've slowly moved to the closed sections of I-10 between Lafayette and Baton Rouge. We're currently working I-10 down to New Orleans,” ARDOT State Maintenance Engineer Deric Wyatt said. 

The real test being the most efficient with limited supplies available. 

“This is a big corridor to try to maintain and clear with the limited resources we brought,” Wyatt said. “Dealing with limited deicing materials, this part of the world doesn't typically see events like this. We're having to rely on mother nature, good old fashioned sunshine and warm temperatures to help melt this snow and ice to break it off so the plows can push it off."

The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development said its crews are busy opening roads. 

"We have I-10 eastbound open from 415 Lobdell to Gramercy exit,” Communications Director Rodney Makler said.

When the roads are clear, repairs will start. 

"We have used graters before to chip at the ice and to move the ice off the roadway, it's just common sense, you're scraping the ground, you'll scrape reflectors off the ground,” Mallett said. 

Which DOTD said will have to be replaced. There is also the potential for potholes to form. 

"Once that water gets into that void and it freezes and expands. certainly an old road has more cracks more potential, but a new road can get them just as well,” Mallett said. 

Repairs can be temperature dependent as well. 

"It can't always be as cold as it is to use hot mix, we'll have to use a cold mix  and when we do, and sometimes that doesn't last longer than two to three weeks, but we'll do whatever we have to do,” EBR Director of Transportation and Drainage Fred Raiford said.

Once roadways and bridges are open, DOTD says they will stay open. 

"If it's open right now, chances are it will not reclose,” Mallett said.

To report issues on state roads, click here. 

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