A culvert collapsed in Coolville after Monday afternoon’s rainfall, closing a section of Ohio 144. (Photo by Sarah Watson)

COOLVILLE — The Village of Coolville is working with the Ohio Department of Transportation to develop a plan to repair the culvert along Ohio 144 that collapsed on Monday.

Ashley Rittenhouse, public information officer for ODOT District 10, said the excessive rainfall that Coolville experienced on Monday afternoon ultimately led to the collapse of the culvert.

Coolville Village Council Member Curtis Rood said the culvert has sustained damage over the course of years since it was installed in 2006.

The village was seeking grant money from the Buckeye Hills Foundation to fix it before the collapse.

After a meeting on Tuesday, Rittenhouse said ODOT reached the decision to use the ODOT Bridge Crew to replace the culvert. She said the first thing the crew will do is clear the trees in that area so that construction can start by the middle of next week. However, the damage caused to the culvert was severe and it could take until the end of August for the road to be open again.

“Our bridge crew is going to be going in there to work as quickly as possible to get the road reopened,” said Rittenhouse.

Rittenhouse said that as of right now, there is no confirmed amount that the project will cost, and ODOT is deciding on which materials and equipment they will use to make the new culvert.

She said the area around the culvert is closed off, and there is a signed detour that will lead travelers to take U.S. 50 to Ohio 124 to Ohio 144.

“We just ask that people stay away from the area,” said Rittenhouse. “There are barricades up and people should not be driving around those barricades. The road is closed.”

Rood lives along the road near the culvert. He said the collapse has made residents’ commutes longer and more frustrating as a result, even with the alternate routes.

“You got to go an extra 5, 10, 15 miles maybe out of your way, and it takes you an extra 20 minutes just to go anywhere,” said Rood. “And if you want to go uptown, it takes 20 minutes just to get up there.”

“It’s certainly an emergency because this is going to cause extra travel time for people to get to work,” said Coolville Mayor Tiffany Rife-Oman. “It’s going to take some extra time, and I don’t think it’s going to be a quick fix.”

As of Tuesday, there are still several homes in the immediate area around the culvert without water or sewer services as a result of the collapse, Rood’s included.

“The village is certainly thankful that nobody was hurt, and we’re going to work very closely with ODOT and partner with them to get this plan rolling as fast as possible,” said Rife-Oman.