Two roads closed, washed out after flooding

Some roadways in the north half of Centre County eroded under heavy rain and against intense flooding.

The result was an unknown number of crater-like holes, some of which caused roads to close due to safety concerns. Asked to put a number on it, Benner Township Public Works Superintendent Dennis O’Leary said, “too many and they’re a major problem.”

Upper Gyp and Purdue Mountain roads will be closed without a timetable for when they’ll be repaired and reopened, he said.

Some holes in the road are up to 10 feet wide and 10 feet deep.

“There are a lot of really bad ones,” O’Leary said. “It’s a major problem that needs to be assessed by engineers. We need to have a feasibility study to determine if we can repair them. It’s going to be a major problem for local traffic.”

Spring Township also experienced several washed away roads, O’Leary said. Some gravel driveways in the area were also washed out.

O’Leary said he hopes that “everyone can be patient and be as careful as possible, because you don’t know what water does under roadway. Use caution.”

This story was originally published October 21, 2016 at 7:25 PM with the headline "Two roads closed, washed out after flooding."