Local News

Fallen power lines block several major Orange County roads for second day

A large tree along North Carolina Highway 54 in Chapel Hill came crashing down onto the highway sometime Friday as Ian rushed across the state.

Posted Updated

By
Keenan Willard
, WRAL eastern North Carolina reporter
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — A large tree along North Carolina Highway 54 in Chapel Hill came crashing down onto the highway sometime Friday as Ian rushed across the state.

The tree was tangled up in power lines, blocking all drivers from being able to pass along the frequently-traveled highway.

Sunday morning, traffic was backed up to the area as the exit to Merritt Mill Road and South Greensboro Street was closed. The road reopened Monday morning.

Current power outages (as of Sunday, 8 a.m., Oct. 2)

Early Sunday, 5% of all Orange County customers were without power, compared to the 1% in Wake County and the less than 1% in Durham and Johnston counties.

As of midnight Sunday, only around 200 Duke Energy customers remained without power in Orange County. Complete restoration is expected Monday afternoon.

Roads remain closed in Orange County

Dozens of major roads in Orange County remained closed on Sunday morning. Most other Ian-related traffic incidents were cleared by now, but Orange County had at least eight other lingering road closures on Sunday morning, according to the North Carolina Department of Transportation.

As of Sunday, 11:30 a.m.
  • West of Carrboro, Ivey Road near Old Greensboro Road was closed in both directions. An NC DOT alert says a tree is caught in a power line.
  • Another tree caught in a power line has closed Mount Sinai Road, south east of Hillsborough.
  • Buckboard Drive near Old State Highway 10 was closed in both directions because of a tree caught in power lines.
  • Lawrence Road near U.S. Route 70 was closed in both directions east of Hillsborough.
  • Edmund Latta Road, north of Hillsborough near North Carolina Highway 57, has closed in both directions due to a fallen tree knocking over power lines.
  • Hunt Road, near Schley, was closed in both directions after a tree fell and knocked over power lines.

All but Hunt Road re-opened by the end of Sunday evening. Hunt Road is expected to re-open early Monday.

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