Water levels are continuing to recede, and many flooded roads have reopened following the more than seven-inch rain across much of Marion County.
While water is now off the Raccoon Creek Bridge on Green Street Road, the pavement has been damaged. The Marion County Highway Department does not believe the bridge structure was damaged. The pavement will be repaired on Monday before the bridge can reopen.
Other roads below Raccoon Lake have mostly reopened after the three open gates were closed Sunday morning. The reopened roads include Old US 51 between the Centralia Water Plant and Community Beach Road. One gate has been reopened four inches due to rising water levels in the lake, but that should not be enough to cause any additional flooding.
Salem Township Road Commissioner Joe Telford says flood waters have receded in Crooked Creek, and the Robin Road, South College Street Extension, South Hotze, South Hoots Chapel, and Westline Road are now passable. However, he reports there is still some flood debris on the roadways, so use caution.
Marion County Sheriff Kevin Cripps says all the roads in the Skillet Fork Bottoms in the eastern part of the county still remain flooded and impassable.
The Salem Water Plant reported an additional five-one-hundredths of an inch of rain in the 24-hour period at seven Monday morning. That’s on top of the 7.42 inches that fell on Friday and Saturday. The Salem Reservoir is just two inches over the spillway down from the record 32 inches early Saturday morning.
The Centralia Water Plant recorded an additional three-tenths of an inch of rain in the 24-hour period ending at seven Monday morning, bringing the total for the weekend to 6.31 inches.
