INTERNET FACT-CHECKER LOOKS FOR POTHOLES IN STORY
The before and after photos of the onramp from Minnesota Blvd to International Airport Blvd in Anchorage were stunning to many, who say that most highway departments can’t fix a pothole if given a year.
But in just 72 hours, an earthquake ravaged road in Anchorage was repaired and being used again. How does that even happen, especially in December?
Snopes, the fact-finding website that often leans to the left, thought it was weird enough that it had to check it out. It’s verdict?
Is This ‘Before and After’ Image of an Earthquake-Damaged Alaskan Road Real?
A set of photographs, one showing a road in Alaska severely damaged by a 7.0 earthquake that hit the state of on 30 November 2018, and another purportedly showing that same road fully repaired just a few days later, was widely circulated on social media. As many viewers encountered these images in online posts from unofficial sources (and/or didn’t believe that construction crews could fix a pothole, let alone an entire road, in just a few days), these photographs were often greeted with skepticism.
Both of these images are authentic and were taken on the dates listed.
This set of photographs was originally posted to Facebook by Alaska Tour & Travel, a vacation-planning company, along with the following description: “Here is just another great example how Alaskans are responding after last Friday’s earthquake! The off-ramp at International Airport Road and Minnesota Boulevard in Anchorage was reopened early this morning, complete with new asphalt.”
For more on this post, visit Snopes.com
To view the DOT aerial footage of the repairs, check out their Facebook video here:
Of course, Snopes isn’t infallible. The fact-checking website tends to favor a liberal point of view, and has been called out by conservative media and pundits numerous times for getting it wrong.
Alaska construction crews are great. Rebuilding the flood damage to the Dalton from the Sag river flood a couple of years ago was probably an even bigger project that was accomplished as expediently.
It’s really amazing what tax dollars can do.
I’m glad we weren’t counting on a toll road.
While I have been often critical over the years of our DOT, kudos to them on this. Great job getting things repaired so quickly.
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