Rain-damaged section of Old U.S. Highway 80 reopened

Published 5:22 pm Tuesday, August 18, 2020

: Personnel with the Mississippi Department of Transportation review severe damage to Old Highway 80 in February. The road was reopened to traffic Tuesday afternoon. (Courtland Wells/The Vicksburg Post)

A section of Old U.S. Highway 80 that closed in February after it was damaged by heavy rain earlier in the year reopened Tuesday afternoon, according to Warren County Sheriff Martin Pace.

State officials on Feb. 11 closed the section of the major thoroughfare between the cement plant and Mount Alban Road after runoff from heavy rains eroded the highway’s shoulder and caused the roadway to fail, making it unsafe to travel.

The Mississippi Department of Transportation in June awarded a $339,787.50 contract to Theobald Construction LLC of Vicksburg to repair the section of the highway that was damaged in January and February, and work began on the repairs in early June.

The damage was not the first time the road was closed.

In 2016, erosion caused by two days of heavy rains forced state officials to shut down both lanes of a section of U.S. 80 at Thornhill Road to repair a washout that removed dirt from under the highway’s westbound lane.

About John Surratt

John Surratt is a graduate of Louisiana State University with a degree in general studies. He has worked as an editor, reporter and photographer for newspapers in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. He has been a member of The Vicksburg Post staff since 2011 and covers city government. He and his wife attend St. Paul Catholic Church and he is a member of the Port City Kiwanis Club.

More by John