DE SOTO, Wis. (WXOW) – The head of the Crawford County Emergency Management Office said that Highway 35 would remain closed until the road is inspected by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT).
James Hackett said at a news conference Wednesday afternoon that it looks like the road may reopen to traffic on Friday, but cautioned it could be longer depending on what WisDOT does.
Besides the closure of the highway, Hackett said that BNSF crews have finished their clean-up of a derailment that happened last Thursday on tracks parallel to Highway 35. They wrapped up their efforts around 6 a.m., he said.
Highway 35 was closed shortly after the derailment as a safety precaution and to allow BNSF and other crews clean up the two engines and ten rail cars that derailed. The line reopened to train traffic on Saturday according to a BNSF spokesperson.
A detour was put in place for drivers to get around the derailment site.
Until the inspections are complete, a statement from emergency management Wednesday morning said drivers should use the detour routes until further notice.
Crawford County said they’d advise the public when the road is reopened.
Here is the detour route provided by authorities: East on WIS 56 to south on US 14 to south on WIS 27 to west on US 171 back to WIS 35. NB – East on WIS 171 to north on WIS 27 to north on US 14 to west on WIS 56 back to WIS 35.
