Roadways Damaged by Saturday Storms Reopen Ahead of Schedule in Lackawanna, Luzerne, and Wyoming Counties

​Thanks to the hard work of PennDOT crews and first responders, most roadways to reopen this week 

Dunmore, PA – Today, Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) Secretary Mike Carroll, Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency Director (PEMA) Randy Padfield, Pennsylvania State Police, and PennDOT Engineering District 4 officials announced roads across Northeast Pennsylvania will open ahead of schedule as a result of the hard work from PennDOT crews and local first responders. 

Flooding from significant rainfall on Saturday, September 9 between 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM resulted in damaged roadways, bridge and road closures, and downed utilities in Lackawanna Luzerne, and Wyoming counties. 

"We understand the impacts that these heavy rains and flooding have had on the people of northeast Pennsylvania," said PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll. "PennDOT and the Shapiro administration are committed to getting these important repairs completed quickly, and we anticipate most of the impacted roadways will be open this week."

PEMA officials are directing any residents and businesses affected by flooding to report damage to their local emergency management coordinator.

"PEMA personnel were engaged with county emergency management staff throughout the weekend to monitor any state support that may have been needed, said PEMA," Director Randy Padfield. "We will work closely with our state, county, and municipal partners to assess damages and determine whether or not this incident might meet federal thresholds for assistance."

Accuweather has classified the rain event as "Training Thunderstorms,"  which refers to heavy rain or thunderstorms continuously hitting the same area in a straight line. 

The region received the following rainfall totals: 

• Clarks Summit: 3.52 inches;
• Falls: 2.81 inches;
• Dallas: 2.77 inches; and
• Clarks Green: 4.69 inches. 
  

Rain fell at the following rates per hour:

• Clarks Summit: 0.78 inches; 
• Falls: 0.62 inches;
• Dallas: 0.92 inches; and
  
• Clarks Green: 0.85 inches. 
  

There were 23 roads closed due to flooding in Lackawanna, Luzerne, and Wyoming counties. Currently, 11 have been repaired and reopened, and 12 have remained closed with size planned to be open today including Route 11(Northern Boulevard) in Chinchilla. PennDOT expects the remaining closed roadways to be open by Monday, September 18. 

"All crews will remain solely focused on flood repairs until all work has been completed," said PennDOT Engineering District 4 Assistant District Executive of Maintenance Jonathan Eboli, P.E. "A combination of department forces and contractors will address damage quickly and efficiently."

Currently, there are 12 roadways closed:

Motorists can check conditions on major roadway miles by visiting www.511PA.com. 511PA, which is free and available 24 hours a day, provides traffic delay warnings, weather forecasts, traffic speed information, and access to more than 1,000 traffic cameras.

511PA is also available through a smartphone application for iPhone and Android devices, by calling 5-1-1, or by following regional Twitter alerts accessible on the 511PA website.

Subscribe to PennDOT news and traffic alerts in Lackawanna, Luzerne, Pike, Susquehanna, Wayne, and Wyoming counties at www.penndot.pa.gov/District4. 

Information about infrastructure in District 4, including completed work and significant projects, is available at www.penndot.pa.gov/D4Results.

Follow local PennDOT news on Twitter and like the department on Facebook and Instagram.

Contacts: Jessica Ruddy, jeruddy@pa.gov, (570) 963-4044
Elizabeth Fabri, efabri@pa.gov, (570) 963.3502

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