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More than 200 pictures were submitted to Macomb County Commissioner Pete Lund, R-Shelby Township, who started the contest that asked residents to locate the most dreadful pothole in the county.

The road cavity on Van Dyke at 16 1/2 Mile Road topped the list, and the numerous potholes on Tilch Road between Hall and 21 Mile roads followed as the next most-cumbersome holes in the road.

“I looked through hundreds of photos submitted to my Web site and examined the worst-looking craters,” Lund said. “Today, I’m rewarding the poor souls who must brave these craters on a daily basis.”

He’s rewarding the photographers who sent in pictures of the winning potholes; a $400 gift card for a set of new tires goes to the first-place winner, who was only identified as Mrs. Carter of Sterling Heights. Lund is also awarding a certificate for a front-end alignment to the runner-up, Daniel VanDeKerkhove of Macomb Township.

“The condition of our roads is unacceptable,” Lund said. “Many people contacted me wanting solutions to this problem. I want the state and local road commissions to hold road builders accountable for their product. We shouldn’t tolerate new roads being reduced to gravel within a few years. Lansing lawmakers and bureaucrats must step up and insure better protection for the taxpayers.”

Lund said it was tough to figure out exactly which pothole on Van Dyke was the worst from the entries he received. “Anyone who has driven down Van Dyke realizes how much that road is in bad shape,” Lund said. “I’m shocked at the condition of one of our major thoroughfares. I hope nobody was hurt by this pothole. I’m sure some tires and wheel rims were.”

Narrowing down the worst pothole on Tilch Road was also a difficult decision and that’s why he chose the entire road as the runner-up for the contest. “Mr. VanDeKerkhove submitted many photos, each one of tire-eating potholes, documenting the horrible condition of Tilch Road,” Lund said. “I couldn’t pick just one pothole because the entire one-mile stretch of Tilch is like some third-world road.”

When looking through the pictures of the worst-of-the-worst potholes in the county, Lund said there did seem to be one area with more entries than most.

“I really think that the Warren and Sterling Heights area seemed to be pretty strong, with the Mound and Van Dyke potholes.”

Neither winner has been able to be contacted regarding their entry, Lund said. The winner, Mrs. Carter, only gave that as her name and left no phone number. The runner-up, VanDeKerkhove, gave his full name, but his phone number is unlisted, Lund said.