CARRABASSETT VALLEY – A pair of bridges along a major access route to northern Franklin County and Canada collapsed as the remnants of Hurricane Irene passed through Sunday evening, stranding roughly 100 people on Sugarloaf Mountain.
Preliminary reports from the scene indicate that Route 27 is now impassable between the two collapsed bridges: just north of the intersection with the access road to Sugarloaf as well as just north of Carrabassett Valley Academy. The northern bridge crosses Carrabassett River, while the southern span sits over a culvert for Brackett Brook, which feeds into the river. Maine Department of Transportation is on the scene to access the collapsed bridges’ damage and Gov. Paul LePage is expected to arrive by helicopter sometime this morning.
According to Carrabassett Valley Fire Chief Courtney Knapp, who was out with his wife surveying storm damage yesterday, when he saw the guardrail on the northern bridge begin to move at roughly 4 p.m. After that, the entire bridge collapsed, almost immediately. Five minutes later, the southern bridge, near CVA, collapsed as well.
Police Chief Scott Nichols said at the scene that about 50 Sugarloaf employees and 50 guests were at the resort when the bridges collapsed. With the access road intersection with Rt. 27 cut off, they were left stranded over night. This morning, at 6:30 a.m., the privately-owned Twin Bridges Road, which provides an alternate access across the mountain, was temporarily repaired and opened to vehicles to provide access to Sugarloaf. MDOT is expected to work further on road, to shore it up for use by heavy vehicles and trucks.
In Franklin County, access to the Eustis/Stratton area is now possible only through Rt. 16, which connects to Rangeley, or through a footbridge that crosses the Carrabassett River.
According to Franklin County Emergency Management Agency Director Tim Hardy, also at the scene of the Rt. 27 collapses, the bridge on Rt. 4 north of Madrid has been reopened for single-lane traffic by the MDOT this morning. Last night, that bridge was closed as a precautionary measure after water was seen passing over the span. However, Hardy said there was concern that the bridge may have suffered some erosion-related damage in the storm and that it would be reassessed by MDOT.
Other than the collapses, Hardy said that the town of Phillips had been particularly hard hit by road washouts. The extent of the damage there was still being assessed at this hour. The Rt. 27 s-curves in Carrabassett Valley, south of the bridge washouts, also sustained damage and is open to one lane of traffic.
“I’ve never seen so much water since the flood of ’87,” Hardy said.
Unofficial rainfall estimates from those at the scene suggest that six inches of rain fell yesterday in Carrabassett Valley.
More information on bridge collapses, road washouts and other storm damage will posted when it becomes available.
Unofficially, Farmington got 4″ of rain.
My unofficial rain gague read 5″ in Farmington.