RICHMOND — Alexander Reed Road was closed Friday at the Abagadasset River, and was expected to remain closed for several weeks after rainfall from a day earlier caused a wash-out and collapsed a culvert, officials said.
Two Richmond Police cars arrived on the scene Friday morning and blocked off the area of the road where the collapse is located.
According to the Richmond Police Department, the culvert collapsed and the dirt around it washed away into the river.
“There’s culmination of precipitation in addition to the ground that was not thawed out and can’t absorb the moisture,” Sgt. Christopher Giles said.
Police expected the road to be closed for four to six weeks for the Maine Department of Transportation to develop a response to the collapse and obtain the permits to fix it, Giles said.
Officials had not yet announced an official detour for the road by late Friday afternoon, but the transportation department was expected to come up with it soon. Giles said the detour will be posted to the Richmond Police Department Facebook page once it’s established.
Giles said the only impact to drivers he has seen so far are cars having to turn around and said traffic was not backed up. Alexander Reed Road connects downtown Richmond with points to the north, as the road eventually crosses Interstate 295 and connects with Route 201 along Cobbosseecontee Stream.
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