RELEASE: CONTACT:

IMMEDIATE Tiffany Elliott Erbach (757) 925-1660 tiffany.erbach@VDOT.virginia.gov Lauren Hansen 757-925-2583

HRO-0636 July 6, 2006

FLASH FLOODING IN GREENSVILLE TEMPORARILY CLOSES SEVERAL ROUTES

VDOT urges motorists to take precautions and follow detours

GREENSVILLE—Heavy downpours accumulating over the last several hours have caused the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) to temporarily close several roads in Greensville County, which are impassable at points.

VDOT crews and State Police are rerouting traffic along sections of Routes 601, 604, 629, 633, 650 and 721, as well as doing emergency roadway repair work, cleaning clogged drains and removing downed trees and limbs to keep roadways safe for motorists. Drivers are encouraged to use alternate routes to navigate around these closed routes and to obey the posted detours in place around the flooding.

Motorists are reminded to use extreme caution while traveling on roadways that may be in low-lying areas or on roads that are prone to flooding.
• Remember never to drive through standing water, as you may lose control of your vehicle.
• Rapidly rising water may engulf your vehicle and sweep it away. According to the National Weather Service, two feet of water will carry away most automobiles. Nearly half of all flash flood fatalities are automobile-based.
• There is also no way to tell if flooded roadways have been washed out by swift-moving waters.
• If you come across a flooded roadway that has not been barricaded, turn around and use an alternate route.

Drivers can log onto www.Virginiadot.org for the latest on local road conditions throughout the commonwealth, and call 511 for traffic information on major thoroughfares while they are on the road.

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