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The big road near Grand Teton National Park that got shut down after a huge collapse on Saturday might partly open again in a few weeks, says the Wyoming Department of Transportation.
The agency said on Monday, “Right now, our geologists and engineers believe they can make a safe detour around the collapsed area using local materials. They aim to open a temporary detour to the public soon, maybe with some strict rules on weight and width, in a few weeks.”
The transportation department hasn’t set a definite schedule for starting permanent repairs on the important highway connecting Idaho and Wyoming.
Meanwhile, road workers are also clearing a mudslide on the same highway, roughly two miles away from where the landslide happened.
On Thursday morning, a crack appeared across both lanes of the road, as shared by the department on Facebook.
This crack, dropping about 8 inches in some spots, made driving unsafe. They fixed it temporarily, and traffic resumed until a mudslide happened in a different place on Friday, closing the road again.
On Saturday morning, the part of the road where the crack was collapsed entirely. The department said it was a big failure, and they expect the road to stay closed for a long time.
Despite efforts by WYDOT and Evans Construction crews to make a detour, the landslide kept moving and destroyed the whole road. Fortunately, no one got hurt, and no equipment got damaged during this process.
On Saturday, Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon had a meeting with the transportation department and the Wyoming Office of Homeland Security to plan how to deal with the big landslide.
“I appreciate the hard work of the WYDOT team to keep everyone safe during this tough time. I’m relieved that no one got hurt during this event,” said the governor.
The department had expected the work to fix the cracked road and clear the mudslide to continue until Saturday. However, the cracked part of the road collapsed.
Darin Westby, the director of the department, said their engineers, surveyors, and geologists moved quickly to keep the highway safe for as long as possible. But unfortunately, the collapse couldn’t be avoided. They’re still on-site working hard to fix the road and reopen the route to Teton Valley.
The department is now looking at permanent solutions for the highway. Westby advised people to avoid the area until it’s safe.
The Teton Pass corridor is very important for commuters and transporting goods between Wyoming and Idaho, according to the US Department of Transportation.