Spring temperatures and rainy conditions last week have led to muddy conditions, deep ruts, and flooding, which caused trouble for drivers and closed some roads.
After the region received more than an inch of rain on Friday, two dirt roads in Hancock closed over the weekend after washouts, according to Hancock Police Chief Andrew Wood.
Birch Road and a dirt section of Old Dublin Road were still closed on Monday. Wood said Highway Department crews expected Birch Road to be back open by the end of the day on Monday, but expected the section of Old Dublin Road between Juniper Road and Kings Highway to remain closed at least through Tuesday.
Elsewhere in the region, muddy conditions last week made roads impassible for some vehicles. On Wednesday night, a man and two teenagers had to be rescued by the New Ipswich Fire Department on after their truck became stuck in the mud.
The truck, which was traveling under the power lines between Route 124 and Stowell Road, became stuck in about three feet of mud and water according to New Ipswich Fire Chief Meredith Lund.
“It was coming into the passenger side of the vehicle,” Lund said. “It was over the door frame and coming into the vehicle.”
Lund said the fire department needed to use its four-wheeler in order to get out to the truck, which was approximately two miles off the road.
“No one actually made contact physically until we got on scene,” Lund said. “We wouldn’t go out for an empty vehicle.”
The occupants called the police department around 8:30 p.m. to say they were stuck, Lund said. It took about two hours to rescue the occupants.
“The only thing we could get down there was the four-wheeler,” Lund said.
Lund said the driver of the truck said he was driving under the power lines in order to cut over from Stowell Road to Route 124.
The truck’s owner communicated with Lund that he would be calling his insurance company to help get his vehicle out of the mud.
“There was no danger to the vehicle or to anyone,” Lund said. “It wasn’t impeding traffic.”
Lund advises anyone who sees mud or a large puddle to not take a chance in hopes that the water or mud is shallow.
“Turn around; don’t go through it,” Lund said. “Try to go around it or turn around. Especially with all the electronics in vehicles now… These guys were not in danger of drowning, but it’s a short lesson on how you don’t know how deep things are. It’s better to be safe.”
Wood echoed the sentiment, reminding drivers to respect road barricades and detours while roads are closed.
“Don’t go around the barricades. They’re there for a reason,” Wood said. “We see that all the time.”
During Friday’s storm, Peterborough’s Route 202 experienced some flooding in the area of Noone Falls, which Peterborough Police Chief Scott Guinard said is a regular flooding spot.
The road flooded up to two to three inches, Guinard said, but was still passable to cars.
“In that particular area, due to the volume of traffic, there’s not much we could do other than put out traffic cones to try to slow traffic,” Guinard said.
Route 101 was also partially shut down on Friday night for about two hours, in the area of Cunningham Pond Road, after a tree came down in the roadway, Guinard said. Traffic was limited to one lane while the tree was removed.