A fast moving thunderstorm dumped as much as 4.5 inches of rain on Newcastle in 45 minutes late Thursday, and drowned roads, washed out culverts and triggered as much as $200,000 in damage.
Newcastle Town Administrator Ron Grenier estimated the damage after touring the area for three days following the downpour.
“Please tell people to slow down for safety’s sake and to be patient. We are working as fast as we can to repair the roads,” he said. “Be careful, you don’t know where the damage might pop up.”
Grenier said drivers should pay special attention to state roads including the River Rd., where culverts were deepened in spots by as much as four feet, also Rtes. 215 and 194.
“It is dangerous,” Grenier said.
The town official said all the community’s roads are passable, but some of them have been repaired with temporary measures. Final repairs will come later.
“Give us a chance to get at it. We are working to get them all fixed,” he said.
He warned the public to use special care to watch out for workers, especially those working on East Old County and North Dyer Neck Roads.
The Newcastle Board of Selectmen convened an emergency session at the town office the morning of July 3 to consider immediate action on a number of state and town roads damaged during the storm.
After a brief discussion of the damages and various courses of action, the board authorized the Damariscotta-based company Hagar Enterprises to perform emergency repairs to East Old County Road in order to make the roadway passable.
Hagar Enterprises co-owner Seth Hagar advised the board that immediate repairs are necessary, included stripping away the damaged road surface, adding gravel where needed and re-ditching the roadway.
In a related action, the board authorized Grenier, the administrator and acting road commissioner, to delegate repair responsibilities to local contractors as needed. Grenier said he immediately planned to delegate some cleanup work to contractor Don Hunt. Hunt also attended the meeting.
Grenier advised the Dept. of Transportation has been contacted about a number of state roads in town that were damaged. He told the board the town has approximately $65,000 left in the town’s road budget for the year, although that amount does not include expenditures through the month of June.
Grenier later toured roads with the town’s engineering consultant, Travis Noyes, who directed contractors to make emergency repairs.
State emergency management officials were scheduled to be in town Tuesday to assess the fiscal impact on the town. Grenier said the state could provide as much as 75 percent of the final repair budget.
Selected for immediate repair include East Old County, Cochran, North Dyer Neck, Lewis Hill, West Old County, and Station Roads.
Damaged state roads include the River and Sheepscot Roads, and Rts. 194, 215, and 213.