CARIBOU, Maine — Spring flooding led to the closure of the Thompson Road in Caribou on Tuesday.
Caribou Public Works Director Dave Ouellette noticed the flooding at 4:30 a.m. while checking city roads, and quickly closed a portion of the roadway to travelers, according to Caribou Police Chief Michael Gahagan.
“The brook overflowed and washed out the dirt around the culvert,” Gahagan said, adding that the road will be closed until the brook recedes.
A brook overflowed and washed out dirt around a culvert underneath the Thompson Road in Caribou on April 14, prompting city officials to close the road until the water recedes and repairs can be made. (Chris Bouchard | Aroostook Republican)
The police chief said it will only take a couple hours to repair the road once the water recedes.
And while it is still possible for motorists to enter Thompson Road via either the Sawyer Road or Madawaska Road, law enforcement is asking the public not to attempt driving through the road until the water recedes and it is fixed.
The National Weather Service office in Caribou issued a flood watch Tuesday morning, effective until Wednesday afternoon, for most of Aroostook County and parts of Somerset, Piscataquis and Penobscot counties. Monday rainfall combined with snowmelt were expected to cause significant runoff into rivers and streams, the NWS said.
The Caribou Public Works crew has since repaired the road. It was reopened to traffic on April 15, according to the Caribou Police Department.
