FARMINGTON — The lower portion of Whittier Road will continue to remain closed all of this week, Town Manager Richard Davis said Monday.

“We’ll probably keep it closed until next week,” he said.

A predicted rainstorm midweek is one reason the section of road will remain temporarily closed.

The town closed the road at noon on Oct. 30 due to the Sandy River continuing to rise in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.

The town has sought an answer to the eroding bank along this portion of the river since last August when Tropical Storm Irene and then spring rains this year wreaked havoc bringing the river to within about 30-feet of the road. The road is monitored with closure expected when it nears 20 feet.

The river has gone back down since Tuesday, Davis said, but the banking is still saturated.

Once it drains and the weather turns colder, town authorities are hoping the banking will stabilize until something can be done about it and it is fixed.

Davis said there have been a lot of problems with people going around the barricades. Some motorists are driving on people’s lawns, he said. He suspects that it had something to do with the high school football game.

The barricades will be moved to a different place beyond Kemp Field so people will be able to turn around, he said.

People should not be going around the barricades, Davis said.

dperry@sunjournal.com

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