Road washout raises flooding concerns again for people living nearby

LENOIR, N.C. — Work has begun in Lenoir after flash flooding washed away a portion of a road last week.

City workers are making the repairs along Old North Road, not far from North Main Street. Heavy rain last week caused it to collapse less than 10 feet away from neighbor Dallas Meade’s home, causing thousands of dollars of damage and disruption for neighbors.

Neighbors shared video of the storm with Channel 9′s Dave Faherty, saying Old North Road looked more like a river than a road. They said there’s flooding there all the time and they’re concerned someone could get hurt.

A spokesperson for Lenoir said 2 inches of rain fell last week in just 45 minutes. Meade said he heard the pavement collapse when the storm hit.

“It started raining so I run in the house, and I was laying watching TV and the next thing I know, I heard a big old bang,” Meade said.

Mud still covers a portion of his home.

Meade said he went to the city on three separate occasions over the years about concerns over the road.

“It washes out every year. Tuesday it finally collapsed,” he said. “They’re not cleaning up the mess that fell and the road is still breaking off.”

A spokesperson with the City of Lenoir said they’re spending $45,000 to repair the road. They’ve directed work crews to remove the old pavement that collapsed.

On Monday, Faherty could see where a new concrete support wall is being built right next to Meade’s home. A beam will also be placed to redirect some of the runoff.

Selena Dula, who shared video of the flooding, is glad to see the work. She hopes the repairs will keep someone from being hurt.

“I’m worried if it keeps raining so much, it will cause the road to flood even more and cause cars to go off in his house. You never know,” she said.

The City of Lenoir is hoping by the end of this week they’ll have the road repaved and be able to reopen it possibly by the weekend.

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