UPDATE: Crews reopen SR 434 in Oviedo

OVIEDO, Fla. — UPDATE: Crews reopened State Road 434 in Oviedo Friday afternoon. The road had been closed since Saturday, because an old drainage structure beneath it had collapsed, opening a 3-foot-wide hole, officials said.

The Florida Department of Transportation paid a contractor $237,000 to repair the road. Construction work began Wednesday morning.

"FDOT extends thanks to those commuters and residents who drove safely and followed the detours while the emergency repairs took place," the agency said.

Earlier story:

A busy road that partially collapsed may reopen earlier than first expected.

Crews are working against a tight deadline. They worked long into the night on State Road 434 in Oviedo, where a hole opened Saturday after a stormwater system beneath the road failed.

The road closure has forced motorists to take alternate routes, including through neighborhoods not used to heavy traffic.

Almost 20,000 vehicles pass through the stretch of highway daily.

A new 42-inch pipe was placed in the ground Thursday to replace the old stormwater system, which was so old that it had been built from materials the Florida Department of Transportation no longer uses.

Oviedo resident Jennifer Warrington said, although the road closure doesn't affect her, the history discovered underneath the road fascinates her.

"How they recovered some old bricks that are over 100 years old or something that are underneath there where the line broke -- that's very interesting," she said.

FDOT tweeted Thursday evening that the contractor is "backfilling the hole and compacting," and hinted that the road could reopen earlier than expected as long as the weather holds up.

The contractor could be fined if the work isn't completed by 8 a.m. Saturday.

Cox Media Group