CRAWFORD COUNTY (KFSM) -- Flooding last week washed out a bridge in Crawford County making the drive to work nearly impossible for some people, many of whom are upset because the bridge is still out.
The bridge crosses Jones Fork Creek on Winfrey Valley Road between Mountainburg and Winslow. Residence said on Thursday (May 26) they got between five and six inches of rain in just about an hour.
Now the people living on either side of the bridge, like Roy Biswell, said they have to drive at least 30 minutes out of the way to get to the next town.
“Towards Locke it probably takes about an hour, hour and 10 minutes to get to Locke,” Biswell said. “Going up toward Sunset it probably takes 30-45 minutes, and up the road that way is really muddy.”
Many people said they're upset because road crews didn't come until five days later. They said their main concern is that emergency crews could not get to the area quickly without the bridge.
Chris Keith, the Crawford County Road Department superintendent, said it’s taken so long because crews are busy trying to fix multiple roads and bridges at the same time.
“It's going to be closed for a couple more days,” Keith said. We are in the process of getting all the debris cleaned up from it to where we can get in there and get material back in and get the road opened up.”
Keith said he knows this is an inconvenience and wants to get it fixed within the next few days.
“I understand that there's certain things that are a problem for people having to go around other ways, but you know, if they will just be patient with us, we're trying to get things cleared off as quickly as possible,” Keith said.
The bridge wasn't the only thing lost in the flood. The City of Fort Smith was getting information about Jones Fork Creek with a $20,000 piece of hydrology equipment that was swept away.