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Vol. 21, No. 38, Wednesday, June 24, 2026
Some roads in Lamont County are unpassable in a normal vehicle due to recent rains, like this one at Highway 834 and Twp Rd 542. Crystal Moren photo.
County roads suffer from major water damage BY JOHN MATHER Multiple Lamont roads were closed on June 22 after three days of heavy rain fell on the area. The worst road with the largest impact was a washout of Highway 15 beside the Pioneer Grain elevator just west of Lamont. “It’s just about a complete washout,” said Lamont County Division 5 councillor Neil Woitas. “The asphalt is still there but underneath, a person could almost walk under it.” The culvert underneath the highway has completely washed away, from the volume of water.
The provincial public roads site suggests the road could be closed for several days while repairs are made. Calls to Alberta Transportation went unanswered as to the severity of the damage and possible damage estimates. A further call to Dow Chemical in Fort Saskatchewan also went unreturned. Dow has been using the major highway as a route for several heavy loads being transported along a heavy haul route for its Path2Zero construction site. The highway is closed and remains closed between Highway 29 and Highway 831 (Rge Rd. 195).
In a report issued on social media June 22, Lamont County reported Range Road 200 from Twp. Road 560 to Highway 29 was closed. Other noted closures are Twp Road 550 from Highway 15 to Rge Rd. 191; Rge Rd. 192 from Highway 15 to Twp 550; Twp 542 from 834 to Rge Rd. 185; and Twp 552 from Hwy. 831 to Hwy. 15. In addition, the release stated residents must proceed with caution as certain roads may be washed out and in certain areas water is crossing roads. “A lot of areas are seeing water on the roads and we’re assessing it to see
the best ways to address it,” said Lamont County Public Works director Darcy Dietz. “We’ve got crews out throughout the county and we expect the list for closed roads will be continuously updated.” He said he didn’t think the County would be bringing in extra crews to help get the roads repaired and opened quickly. “At this point we’;re seeing water levels so high that culverts can’t handle it but with the rain stopped we’re actually seeing some water levels dropping.” Continued on Page 2