Date:  Thursday, November 05, 2009

Contact: Meagan McFadden, WSDOT Communications, (509) 654-0697

YAKIMA – Today, WSDOT and contractor crews started building rough access trails to access the landslide that covered SR 410 with millions of cubic yards of debris three weeks ago. These trails will allow geotechnical experts to bring in off-road drill rigs. Geotechs anticipate moving the drill rigs onto the slide early next week to collect rock and soil samples and to install instruments to monitor movement and water accumulation in the landslide.

“We have been monitoring the landslide with a radar unit from across the valley for two weeks to see if there has been any movement,” said Todd Trepanier, WSDOT Assistant Regional Administrator of Maintenance and Operations. “Based on the information we have received from the radar and visual observations, there hasn’t been any movement, and we feel it’s safe for our crews to start taking samples from the slide area.”

As crews work to build the access trails for next weeks drilling, WSDOT will be monitoring the slide to ensure safe working conditions.

“This information will help us better understand the stability of the landslide,” said Don Whitehouse, WSDOT Regional Administrator. “This work is an important start toward determining the ultimate location for a permanent SR 410.”

WSDOT offers a number of ways for people to get up-to-date information:
• Call the transportation hotline (509) 577-1635
• Sign-up for e-mail updates regarding the SR 410 Nile Valley landslide and closure
• View photos of the landslide on SR 410 at Flickr
• Watch video taken of the landslide on YouTube
• Call the Yakima County Emergency Management hotline (509) 574-1900 


                                                        

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