Sinkhole closes lane of First Avenue NE in Cedar Rapids

UPDATE: One lane of southbound First Avenue NE between 35

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and 34

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street is closed, effective immediately, due to a sinkhole, according to Craig Hanson, Cedar Rapids' public works maintenance manager.

”It's spring, and voids are starting to show,” Hanson said.

Hanson said crews responding to a motorist's report drilled through the 18-inch-thick pavement to find the sinkhole.

Southbound traffic will be merged into the center southbound lane during the repairs, expected to take a  day or two, Hanson said.

“Right now the expectation is we will pour today and they will be able to open tomorrow,” Hanson said.

Crews are also repairing a sinkhole in the westbound lane of Ellis Road NW near the Edgewood Road intersection. Hanson said crews have been keeping an eye on that spot all winter.

”We've been nursing it along to get to spring, and now spring is here,” he said.

The Ellis Roads repair should also take a few days, Hanson said.

For a complete list of road closures please check www.cedar-rapids.org/traffic web site under "Current Street Closures."