May 3, 2011
05/04/11 The failure of a 5 foot culvert under Olive Trail between Dixon Lake and the pond area to the east on Monday caused the closing of Olive Trail.
Monday afternoon the Marshall County Commissioners held an emergency meeting and issued an emergency declaration closing Olive Trail a half mile south of Overmyer Drive. Olive Trail collapsed about noon at the outlet pipe running underneath the road. The asphalt dropped nearly a foot making the road impassable.
During the emergency meeting Neal Haeck, Highway Superintendent said, “The area of the collapse has been a problem area for county repair crews for some time. I have already started the paperwork seeking permits to replace the culvert.”
President of the County Commissioners Kevin Overmyer said, “An engineer from R.W. Armstrong was in the area and came out and took a look at our problem. She then took photos and sent them to Indy.”
Commissioner Overmyer said that the county had already begun the process of obtaining the proper permits from IDEM (Indiana Department of Environmental Management) to make the repairs.
“Because of this emergency situation, the process will move much faster.”
The County has hired an excavator who began working Tuesday removing the roadway and culvert. The County has the culvert pipe ready to install and it is hoped that now the water is flowing between the two bodies of water that they will be able to get it installed on Wednesday or Thursday. It’s hoped that utilities can be located on Wednesday and the whole thing could be replaced yet this week.
Overmyer said that Olive Trail is a main road into the city and due to the declared emergency situation they will move forward keeping IDEM informed of the work being completed and they will seek a permit after the fact.
Overmyer said, “We’ve got a lot of traffic on that road and we can’t have it closed very long.”