Rain slows county road work

Record rainfall during October has hampered fall maintenance on Flathead County roads, but crews are out in full force to get roughly 400 miles of gravel roads graded by winter.

“We’re not getting stuff graded like we’d like to, but the long-range forecast doesn’t look too bad,” county Public Works Director Dave Prunty said Tuesday. “Two more weeks of no rain would be fantastic.”

A total of 4.86 inches of rain was recorded at Glacier Park International Airport during October, well over the previous record of 3.4 inches set in 1914. In outlying areas of the county residents have reported even more rainfall, Prunty said.

“In West Glacier, Hungry Horse, the North Fork, they’re at 10 inches and they got 10 to 11 inches in the June storm,” he said. “We’re doing repairs on Rabe Road (north of Columbia Falls) again and there’s water everywhere.

“The very end of the North Fork Road will be extremely difficult,” he added. “We’d like to get it worked over this year. The last six to seven miles I’m sure it’s very, very muddy at this point.”

Prunty said road crews will try to get to most gravel roads in the county before freezing temperatures deter the work.

“If they’re in good shape we won’t touch them, but this incessant rain brings on potholes,” he said.

The county recently wrapped up a road project on the south end of Columbia Falls Stage Road. A section of the road was moved and rebuilt to eliminate a recurring slump problem.

“We’re very happy with the results,” Prunty said. “Next year it will be chip-sealed.”

County crews also are replenishing their stockpiles of a salt and sand mixture used when roads are icy.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by email at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.