Heavy rains cause washouts

Two Marshall County roads have washouts after many heavy rains that have, over time, eroded them due to rusted-out pipes.

A third road is not completely washed out but will take some patching.

Larry Hall, county administrator and road manager, and crews blocked off Hernando Road and detoured traffic three-quarters of a mile in a loop on Isaac Chapel Road. The cause of that blowout was a rusted pipe.

Hall said the metal pipes will last about 20 to 30 years before the bottoms will rust out and leaks cause washouts under the pipe. Sandy soil is often an added contributor to road collapses.

The latest washout last week was on Kimbrough Chapel Road. A three-foot diameter discharge pipe, running down from a pond above the road and positioned under the road, rusted out.

Hall said the blowout occurred last week when it rained all night. A passerby noticed the failure in the road and had just enough space to drive by. The driver called supervisor Eddie Dixon and Johnny Bolden went up to the area and blocked the road. The blowout was just a few hundred feet below the old Presbyterian church site on Kimbrough Chapel Road.

“It didn’t all wash out at once and the driver barely made it through before daylight,” Hall said.

County crews will patch up a spot on Moore Road this week if weather permits.

The Hernando Road repair awaits dryer weather conditions.

A Yarbrough Chapel Road’s washout, which is located near the Atway Community north of Duck Pond Road, will be repaired as soon as Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) can work with the county to provide resources for the work.

NRCS put in the retention pond, Hall said.

A smaller pipe taking off water from the road ditch was also damaged and will have to be repaired.