ODOT closing highways in aftermath of severe weather

The Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT) is responding to many counties that were hit with tornadoes and severe weather Saturday night into Sunday.

Bryce Boyer with ODOT said they are taking actions to keep roads safe due to flooding, debris, and down powerlines.

“Because at the end of the day the safety of the traveling public is ODOT’s top priority, so if we have to shut down a highway to keep people from driving over debris into debris or over especially live power lines, we’re going to do that,” Boyer said.

Boyer said when roads open will depend on what’s causing the closures.

“It really is just depending on what these closures are, some of these are due to high water and that is just kind of out of our control, it’s just a matter of how long it takes for that water to recede some of its for storm damage,” Boyer said.

Boyer advises everyone who lives in the counties that were hit the hardest to find an alternate route because there is a good chance you will have a detour.

“Plan your route, we recommend the Drive Oklahoma mobile app, you can see real-time traffic, you can see where closures are in real-time,” Boyer said.

He also advises not to high water in the roadway.

“Best thing you can do is plan your route before you go, every trip every time. If you do see water on the roadway, don’t test it, there’s no point in driving through a flooded roadway, it’s always better to turn around, don’t drown,” Boyer said.

For the most up-to-date highway closures from severe weather, click here for ODOT’s Traffic Advisories page.

As of 8 p.m., ODOT reported the following closures and delays:

Love County:

• All lanes of north and southbound I-35 are open at mile marker 15, in Marietta. Drivers should be prepared for delays and intermittent lane closures Monday as crews work to clear the area of debris.

McIntosh County:

• All lanes of east and westbound US-266 are closed at North 4220 Road, just east of Checotah, due to high water.

Murray County:

• All lanes of eastbound and westbound SH-7 are closed between Woodruff Road and US-177 in Sulphur due to severe weather clean-up.
• All lanes of north and southbound US-177 are closed between Lawton Avenue and Denney Road in Sulphur due to severe weather clean-up.

Drivers are urged to avoid the area. For drivers who cannot avoid the area, a local detour is in place.

Pittsburg County:

• All lanes of eastbound and westbound SH-31 are closed between Friendship Road and Haywood Road due to high water.
• All lanes of eastbound and westbound SH-63 are closed between Crawley Road and Hopper Road due to high water.

ODOT reminds drivers, that if you see flooding conditions, do NOT drive around the barricade if the road is closed and do NOT enter the water.