Mountain highway connecting Wyoming and Idaho could reopen in a few weeks after landslide

CNN

By Raja Razek, Susannah Cullinane and Andy Rose, CNN

(CNN) — The major highway near Grand Teton National Park that was closed after a “catastrophic” collapse Saturday could partially reopen in a matter of weeks, according to the Wyoming Department of Transportation.

“Currently, WYDOT geologists and engineers are confident they can build a safe, temporary detour around the slide area using local fill material and paving two temporary lanes,” the agency announced Monday. “They are hoping to have a temporary detour open to the public, likely with some strict weight and width restrictions, in a few weeks.”

The transportation department says there is still no firm timeline for when construction on permanent repairs could begin on the critical highway linking Idaho and Wyoming.

Road crews are simultaneously working to clear a mudslide on the same highway, about two miles from the landslide.

The initial crack appeared Thursday morning across both lanes of travel, the department said in a post on Facebook at the time.

The crack across lanes dropped vertically roughly 8 inches in some places, causing unsafe driving conditions. A patch was put in place and traffic resumed until a mudslide in a different location on Friday closed the road.

Saturday morning, the roadway where the initial crack happened collapsed, the department said, adding the roadway had “catastrophically failed, and a long term closure is expected.”

“WYDOT crews, along with contract crews from Evans Construction, were working in the area to construct a detour around the damage, but the landslide continued to move, taking out the whole road,” the department said Saturday. “No crews were hurt in the process, and no equipment was damaged.”

Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon said Saturday he had met with the transportation department and Wyoming Office of Homeland Security officials to coordinate a response to the “catastrophic landslide.”

“I am grateful for the efforts of WYDOT staff to protect public safety during this developing situation, and am thankful no one was injured during this incident,” the governor said.

Work to repair the cracked roadway and mudslide had been anticipated to last into Saturday, according to the department, and then the cracked section of the roadway collapsed.

“WYDOT engineers, surveyors and geologists mobilized quickly to try to maintain highway viability as long as possible, but catastrophic failure could not be avoided. WYDOT remains on site decisively engaged on fixing the road and restoring connectivity to the Teton Valley,” Darin Westby, the department’s director, said in a statement.

Department officials said they are reviewing long term solutions and repairs to the highway and Westby urged the public to stay away from the site until it was stabilized.

The Teton Pass corridor “serves as a critical commuter route and facilitates the transport of goods and services that are lifelines to the growing regional economies in Wyoming and Idaho,” according to the US Department of Transportation.

CNN’s Sarah Dewberry contributed to this report.

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