ORANGE PARK, Fla. — Drivers in part of Orange Park had a longer commute than normal to school and work Monday morning.
A damaged bridge closed a section of Moody Avenue near Blanding Boulevard.
A dip in the road was noticeable Saturday night, but by Monday, chunks of it had fallen through, and crews have blocked off even more of the area around it.
“It’s kind of scary to know because I travel up and down Moody and my son bikes it every single day to go to school and he could’ve been caught in it as well," said Renee Flores, who works at Dye YMCA near the road closure.
Flores is relieved that Moody Avenue’s culvert gave way on a weekend when her son wasn’t biking across it.
But now that it’s closed right in front of where she works at the Dye YMCA, it made for an inconvenient start to the school and work week.
“He normally comes to the YMCA and shoots basketball before school, then bikes to Lakeside," said Flores. "He can’t do that right now, so we’re having to make sure he gets on the bus on time.”
A Clay County spokesperson says the road was shut down after a sheriff’s deputy noticed a dip in the road while on patrol Saturday.
In a statement, the spokesperson said the damage to the box culvert was caused by excessive rainfall and they’re actively working to get repairs underway.
However, the county did not provide a timeline.
Road closure signs sit right in front of the Dye YMCA.
“It’s been a little bit inconvenient to some of the members," said Flores. "A lot of people even think we’re closed, so I’ve had to reiterate and even send messages out to a lot of people that we’re still operational.”
A mile-and-a-half-long detour runs along Blanding Boulevard, which took a First Coast News crew five minutes and seven seconds to navigate around.
CLICK HERE: Road detour around shuttered Orange Park bridge
Flores says she feels for some of the Lakeside High students who typically make their way to the YMCA after school.
“We have practices and a lot of teens come straight from school to their practice," said Flores. "It’s going to be difficult. Parents are going to have to figure out how to get them here.”
Folks living near Moody Avenue are no strangers to detours.
There’s another road closure for drainage work on Richards Road just a few blocks away that’s been shut down since June.
Fortunately, that is scheduled to reopen in the next two weeks or so, so that will bring drivers some relief while they deal with the Moody Avenue closure for the foreseeable future.
Clay County public works posts updates about road projects here.
Clay County's full statement on the Moody Avenue closure:
"The damage on Moody Avenue is due to excessive rainfall that caused damage to a box culvert, causing the road to be unsafe.
The road is closed until further notice and we’ll update our community as repairs progress. We’re actively working to get these repairs underway. You can stay up to date on the latest reports on our Road Projects page, which is right on our homepage. You can also sign up for our Road and Lane Closure Report, which is delivered to your email every Friday. You can do that on our homepage as well."