Publication Date June 13, 2016 | KWQC-TV6

Extreme heat causes Iowa road to buckle upward

United States
Highland Road near Atlantic, Iowa buckled in extreme heat on Saturday, when the heat index reached 101 °F. Photo: KJAN Radio, Jessica Tye Shroyer
Highland Road near Atlantic, Iowa buckled in extreme heat on Saturday, when the heat index reached 101 °F. Photo: KJAN Radio, Jessica Tye Shroyer

The extreme heat now baking many parts of Iowa can be hard on roadways.

A stretch of Highland Road west of Atlantic, Iowa buckled on Saturday, a condition known as a pavement “blow-up.”

“This happens to concrete roads sometimes in the summer,” says Cass County Engineer Charles Marker.

“The concrete expands in the heat and can sometimes rise up as high as a foot to a foot-and-a-half.”

The air temperature in the area Saturday was 93 °F with a heat index of 101 °F