CHESTERFIELD, Va. (WRIC) — Clean up is underway in Chesterfield County after Zeta and a separate storm system passed through central Virginia. The county reported several road closures Friday due to high water.
While Chesterfield did not experience any catastrophic issues from Thursday’s weather, downed trees and road closures did cause problems and led residents to pick up the pieces.
The 5500 block of Otterdale Road was closed for more than eight hours Friday due to high water, with the right lane submerged in water and spilling into the left lane. The county had to get proactive after people began to ignore the “Road Closed” signs, sending police to monitor the closed areas.
Chesterfield Fire and EMS said the rain accumulation was a problem for roads prone to flooding. Residents in the Brandermill neighborhood helped clean up after a massive tree fell on someone’s home.
Karyn Carpenter, a resident in the Brandermill neighborhood, told 8News it has happened often.
“These storms all come up in the dark so you never know so like I’ll sit at my backdoor and I’ll be watching the trees,” she said.
Another neighbor, Charles Kerr, said it’s best to stay inside during a storm and avoid the water filled ditches.
“When Sandy, I think it was Sandy that hit us, we were downstairs not near windows and stuff because if we knew a tree was coming down stay away from windows,” Kerr said. “We have a drain so we have to make sure that’s clean or else our basement will flood.”
Otterdale Road and Winterpock Road at Hancock Village have all opened back up. Chesterfield Fire and EMS said the county is aware of the roads prone to flooding and is working to address the drainage problem.
