Heatwave prevents concrete from drying correctly on Highway 242

Extra water trucks were used to spray down the cement on Highway 242 to ensure that it was drying correctly during the intense heatwave over the weekend. 

CalTrans began the repaving project on Friday night and planned to replace 3500 feet of concrete along Highway 242 North in Concord. However, extra steps were taken due to the triple-digit temperature. 

"There's always heat in concord but the record heat is unusual," said Vince Jacala, a spokesman from CalTrans, "We're having to do the extra pours with the concrete trucks and the water trucks to make sure the concrete is cool enough to cure." 

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Works crews were also taking extra precautions during the heatwaves by drinking plenty of water and taking breaks in their air-conditioned trucks, CalTrans said. 

Other parts of California also experienced an extreme heatwave over the weekend. In Death Valley, the temperature went up to 130 degrees all three days of the weekend, just 4 degrees lower than the highest known temperature on the planet, which was also recorded in Death Valley in 1913.