Remember how earlier today Washington County’s roads department said the gates at Fern Hill Road were opened, allowing traffic through after an eleven day closure? Well, that’s no longer the case. It’s closed again.
At 3:47 p.m., the county said the road had flooded, prompting the gates to once again go up.
“Fern Hill Road is closed between Taylor Way and Geiger Road due to flooding,” the Washington County Department of Land Use and Transportation said.
That’s right: For just under three hours today, you could drive the road, but no longer. Now you’ll need a boat.
Before driving the road during periods of heavy rain, check out the cameras on tripcheck.com to see if the road is closed or not, as today’s on-again, off-again road closure illustrates so well: The road can flood quickly, and changes can happen in the blink of an eye.
Chas Hundley is the editor of the Gales Creek Journal and sister news publications the Banks Post and the Salmonberry Magazine. He grew up in Gales Creek and has a cat.
