By Katie Bauer - bio | email
LUBBOCK, TX (KCBD) - Days after our record rainfall several roadways in nearby counties still remain closed. The hardest hit right now in our area is U.S. 87.
If you are leaving Lubbock going south on Highway 87, you're going to be re-routed once you hit Tahoka. "It is a big detour, but it is definitely not safe to have any kind of traffic on U.S. 87 right now through there, so that is really our best option to detour traffic around there," said Dianah Ascencio with the Texas Department of Transportation.
From Tahoka to Lamesa, U.S. 87 is closed, because of so much standing water. "It was at 24 inches when we started pumping water off and now we are down to 8 inches, so hopefully we will hear soon and in the next couple of days we will have that water off that roadway and traffic back on there," said Ascencio.
A pump is now working overtime clearing out 3,300 gallons of water a minute. "So far we've actually pumped off 9 million gallons of water off the roadway and we are still continuing to do so," said Ascencio.
To put that in perspective that amount of water would fill nearly 14 Olympic swimming pools.
To check on all area road closures, (click here).
©2010 KCBD NewsChannel 11. All rights reserved.
All content ©Copyright 2000 - 2013 WorldNow and KCBD, a Raycom Media Station. 