Cars beware: It's pothole season

Drivers beware: It's pothole season

Several motorists near Ann Arbor were stranded Friday after hitting a large pothole in the center lane of westbound I-94 between Zeeb and Baker roads in Washtenaw County.

Misty Huffman was returning to El Paso with her father Friday when she hit the pothole and was forced to veer off the road along with several other cars.

"The police thought it was a chunk of broken concrete at first, then ice chunks because there was nothing in the road. After we got up to the next exit, right past another viaduct there were more cars who had the same thing," said Huffman, 38.

Huffman said the pothole took a chunk out of her front driver's side tire rim, blew the suspension, damaged her windshield and side mirror.

"Several thousands of dollars in damage to my car and I'm stuck in Michigan until Monday," said Huffman, who was driving a 2010 Ford Flex. "I'm surprised it took them so long to fix. There were at least seven vehicles, a semi truck and up at that next exit, there were several cars in the ditch."

Emily Kizer, communications director for the Washtenaw County Road Commission, said the pothole prompted officials to shut down two lanes of traffic for about 30 minutes while crews made repairs. But the pothole is just one of many cropping up throughout the region.

"It's unfortunately pothole season," Kizer said. "Crews are out and if people see potholes or have issues, we hope that they call our service center so we can get it fixed immediately."

Kizer said potholes are caused by a failure in asphalt pavement and is made worse by traffic passing over the area. Eventually, concrete begins to break.

MDOT gives tips on how to avoid potholes by being extra cautious.

Report a pothole:

srahal@detroitnews.com