The record-breaking heat in the Pacific Northwest is keeping transportation crews working, as roads buckle and need emergency repairs.
Seattle hit 108 degrees Monday, a record, before falling at least 10 degrees Tuesday.
The Washington State Department of Transportation Twitter account kept drivers and Seattle residents up-to-date on emergency road repairs and cracks that formed throughout the record-setting heatwave.
Current weather shows 96 degrees on Snoqualmie Pass. At 6:13 p.m. https://t.co/bKMgwvOEh4
— Washington State DOT (@wsdot) June 29, 2021
Some repairs just couldn’t be completed in the heat and crews worked overnight to patch cracks and roadways.
Update: The concrete panels along NB I-5 to I-705 continue to expand in the heat and now three lanes of the collector-distributor are closed. The exit to City Center is closed as well. Crews will attempt a repair once temperatures drop tonight. @wspd1pio pic.twitter.com/1y6zmw5GUu
— WSDOT Tacoma (@wsdot_tacoma) June 29, 2021
Until further notice, crews will close the two right lanes of the shared exit until temperatures drop and they can attempt a repair tonight. It’s too hot for repairs to take in this heat. (2/2) @wspd1pio https://t.co/a6ymBJJUii pic.twitter.com/j3F52dInHS
— WSDOT Tacoma (@wsdot_tacoma) June 28, 2021
State Route 544 milepost 7 near Everson, Wa is currently closed. The asphalt roadway is buckling and unsafe for travel. WSDOT is advised and detours are currently being set up.
— Trooper Rocky Oliphant (@wspd7pio) June 28, 2021
BL pic.twitter.com/5Yb9UYzbDc