Callow Road at East Creek closed to traffic

Will remain so until further notice, Engineer’s Office reports

The Lake County Engineer’s Office recently announced Callow Road at the bridge over East Creek in Leroy Township is closed to all traffic. The bridge is located approximately 0.3 miles south of state Route 86. Lake County Engineer Jim Gills said his office continues to monitor the location. The most recent inspection showed continued deterioration of the embankment and wingwalls in the southeast quadrant that requires traffic to be diverted from the structure. The road will remain closed until further notice, Gills confirmed. “Right now, we have a danger of total failure and the part of the road going,” he said. “The headwall that is failing is made out of stone blocks and a bunch of them fell down, a lot more than we expected .... We knew when it was loose and it was pushing out, we thought there may only be a few. Plus, it’s endangering the road, that’s the bottom line. “We apologize for the short notice and the inconvenience, but this office believes that the emergency closure is necessary to protect public welfare and safety,” Gills said, emphasizing motorists should not try to drive around and/ or move the barricades to gain access to the blocked off stretch of road. “We’ve talked to (the Ohio) Public Works (Commission), they have some money, and we’re going to apply for some emergency funds, and, hopefully, we’ll be able to start some kind of replacement probably in July, by the time we get some drawings done,” he added. Additionally, due to the unsafe nature of the wingwall, the public should not be in the stream near the bridge, Gills noted. The Lake County Engineer’s Office suggests motorists take Route 86 to Girdled Road as an alternate route.

CHAD FELTON — THE NEWS-HERALD Callow Road at East Creek in Leroy Township will remain closed until further notice, the Lake County Engineer’s Office recently confirmed.