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Alaska Road Used To Haul Oil Supplies Reopens After Flooding

Unprecedented flooding intermittently closed portions of it for more than two months.

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The only road available for hauling supplies to Alaska's North Slope oil fields has reopened following unprecedented flooding that intermittently closed portions of it for more than two months.

State transportation officials say traffic began moving at 8 a.m. Friday on the Dalton Highway.

Flooding from the nearby Sagavanirktok River caused the road closures and essentially halted oil industry deliveries.

Dubbed the Haul Road, the Dalton is a 414-mile, often desolate stretch that begins near Fairbanks and leads to Deadhorse, the oil-industry town serving Prudhoe Bay. It can be treacherous in winter, and has been featured on the cable show "Ice Road Truckers."

Deadhorse was never fully shut off since its airport remained open.

Gov. Bill Walker twice issued disaster declarations in response to the flooding.