Powerful storms cause dip on Mooney Boulevard in Visalia

VISALIA, Calif. (KFSN) -- In North Visalia, a dip on Mooney Boulevard north of Riggin Avenue had several people who take that route concerned for their vehicles.

One of the lanes on Mooney now has a temporary fix for drivers. But underneath that piece of metal, the road has a severe dip caused by recent storms.

"I felt the strange little dip, and I do drive past this road every single day so I noticed, oh something is different," explained Stephanie Reyes.

Reyes has lived in a nearby neighborhood for over a decade.

She remembers feeling the uneven road this weekend and she wasn't the only one.

Visalia Public Works Director Nick Bartsch says after receiving several calls Saturday, crews responded to the area and came up with a temporary solution.

A metal plate and asphalt are now covering the road depression.

"With the amount of rain that we've experienced recently, these types of issues can come up that may have gone unnoticed for some time, so it may be related to substandard compaction or other issues that may arise from when the ground becomes saturated in that area," said Visalia Public Works Director Nick Bartsch.

On Monday, city crews assessed the extent of the damage to find a permanent solution.

Reyes and other neighbors I talked with say they're grateful it was addressed quickly.

Reyes says after dangerous sinkholes were spotted across the state amid recent storms, her mind did think of the worst.

"People have shared what's been happening across the entire state. I saw one in LA that was really bad, multiple cars went down, and that came to mind, that could have been me, that could have been someone else but thankfully it wasn't," said Reyes.

Officials are asking everyone who drives over the plate to take things slow.