Published on Friday, May 12, 2006
in the WKMG News

FHP: Road Closures Still Day-To-Day Issue

The Florida Highway Patrol will continue evaluating smoke and smog conditions along the Beachline and Interstate 95 this weekend and decide whether to keep segments of those roadways open for early morning commuters, according to Local 6 News partner Florida Today.

Each morning, between 4 and 4:30 a.m., troopers will drive along the two highways to determine whether conditions are safe enough for motorists, said Kim Miller, FHP spokeswoman.

Drivers are warned to expect possible delays Saturday and Sunday mornings stemming from brush fires in Central Brevard County, she said.

Friday, the Beachline and I-95 remained open all morning when a cool front passed through the area and cleared out the smoky conditions. The highways had been closed off between 5 and 9 a.m. earlier this week.

"This is promising," Miller said, but she warned, "it's a guessing game. We're not out of the woods yet."

Although about a half inch of rain overnight helped in Brevard, drier conditions are in store for this weekend, said National Weather Service senior meteorologist Scott Spratt.

Conditions will be favorable for fires, but "the winds are going to remain on the light side, below 15 mph," Spratt said.

Brevard residents can expect a 20 percent chance of rain Monday and a 30 percent chance on Tuesday.