BASS LAKE — Those wishing to travel between The Forks and Way of the Mono along the south shore of Bass Lake have been met with barriers blocking Road 222.
On Sunday afternoon, Mar. 6, reports began to come in about a washout on the north side of the road, and County Roads was called out to put up barriers to keep the public safe from any hazard posed by the hole developing under the roadway.
On Monday, the Madera County Public Works Department came out to evaluate the situation, and discovered the damage in the area where the Courtney Fire burned down to the lake shore in 2014, denuding the landscape.
With the heavy rains over the weekend this caused rocks, silt, mud and debris to flow down the mountain, plugging up and finally breaking the culvert. The water then worked its way around the pipe, taking the surrounding soil with it and causing a washout underneath the roadway.
Brad Phillips, Deputy Public Works Director of Madera County Public Works, says it was too wet on Monday to start repairs. Also, all utility companies who have lines running through the area must be notified 48 hours in advance of any work getting underway, so they can take steps to protect their transmission lines.
Phillips says they are now excavating the damaged section of the roadway, and if the ground is stable enough, they plan to install the new culvert on Thursday morning.
Barring any wet weather events, they hope to have the roadway open by midday Friday, Mar. 11.
Road 222 closed at The Forks – photo by Gina Clugston
