N.C Highway 12 will remain closed from Oregon Inlet to the village of Rodanthe for the remainder of the day today, as worsening conditions during this afternoon’s encroaching high tide make it too unsafe to reopen the road to traffic.
A stationary low pressure system has brought strong winds and large waves to the Outer Banks for the last three days. As a result, N.C. 12 is covered with sand and deep ocean overwash at the Pea Island Visitor Center and at the ‘S-Curves’ just north of Rodanthe. Conditions at other locations on N.C. 12 between Rodanthe and Hatteras Village are passable but difficult, with sand and standing ocean water at several locations.
N.C. Department of Transportation crews spent the morning and much of the afternoon trying to clear the roadway and build a protective berm to prevent the road from being undermined. As conditions allow, crews will continue to clear the road tomorrow so it can be reopened to traffic as soon as possible. The weather forecast calls for slowly improving conditions beginning late Wednesday into Thursday.
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