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Officials Urge Drivers To Be Careful In Stormy Weather

Oregon Department of Transportation

The state Department of Transportation says parts of several highways in western Oregon were closed Tuesday because of high water from heavy rainfall.

ODOT spokesman Rick Little expects a lengthy closure for the Siletz Highway in coastal Lincoln County. It was closed because of standing water.
Little says those who are traveling on coastal highways and into the cascades should be prepared for the unexpected.

Little: “If you hit standing water you can start hydro-planing even if you’re going as slow as 35 mph.  If you come to a road like Highway 229 is right now, where you see that the road is flooded. Don’t try to drive through it.  In as much as 12 inches of water, a car can actually be swept off the roadway. If you come to a flooded road, stop, turn around, take an alternate route.”

ODOT has also closed Highway 22 in Yamhill County after a sinkhole affected both lanes. More rain is on the way and Little says more flooding and mudslides are possible in the next few days.
 

Rachael McDonald is KLCC’s host for All Things Considered on weekday afternoons. She also is the editor of the KLCC Extra, the daily digital newspaper. Rachael has a BA in English from the University of Oregon. She started out in public radio as a newsroom volunteer at KLCC in 2000.