Lauderdale County approves emergency repairs to Arundel Road bridge

Published 4:00 pm Monday, March 2, 2020

The Lauderdale County Board of Supervisors authorized emergency repairs of a bridge on Arundel Road Monday, to help alleviate traffic congestion some drivers experienced this weekend. 

The bridge, which crosses Hognose Creek, has deteriorated timber pilings and a riser in need of replacement, according to County Road Manager Rush Mayatt. 

It closed on Feb. 21, following an inspection by the Federal Highway Administration. 

The Mississippi Department of Transportation was doing work on the interstate this weekend around the Meehan area, which reduced traffic to one lane, Mayatt said. 

When drivers took exit 129 to Arundel Road or Old Highway 80, they encountered more delays as they approached bridges closed on both roads. 

“There’s not a good place to turn around on Arundel Road at all, so they’re turning around in people’s yards, getting stuck, tearing people’s stuff up, just to come back, get back on the interstate and have to sit there and wait,” Mayatt said. 

Mayatt called in crews to put up barricades and signs alerting drivers, but more work on the interstate is expected this weekend, he said. 

District 4 Supervisor Joe Norwood said he received several emails from residents on Arundel Road frustrated by the bridge closure. 

The repairs would come out of the road department’s budget, Mayatt said. 

Mayatt said he will be getting quotes from contractors and hoped to have the work completed within the next month.