Highway 101 closed due to massive slide

Mail Tribune (Medford, OR — Wayback)

2019-02-27

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BROOKINGS -- Highway 101 is closed at milepost 344, 12 miles north of Brookings after a massive slide Monday disrupted the roadway, according to the California Department of Transportation. Named the Hooskanaden Slide, the area is actively moving, according to an update from Curry County Emergency Services. The shifting roadway stretches between .75 and .8 of a mile, Oregon Department of Transportation spokesman Gary Leaming estimated. Work to repair the roads is stalled until the area stops being active. ODOT said it hope that will be Wednesday. In the meantime, ODOT is working to get contractors on site to get a bid and a plan in place. For necessary travel in between Brookings and Gold Beach, Oregon Highway 255, Carpenterville Road between Cape Ferello and Pistol River, is an available, however, CCES urges the public to avoid travel between the two towns if possible. There are areas of gravel on Carpenterville Road, as well as places where the road chokes down to a single lane. Most commercial trucks are prohibited from taking the alternate route due to the narrow and winding nature of the road. Starting Wednesday, ODOT will station checkpoints at both ends of the highway to ensure that the commercial trucks do not pass through Carpenterville Road. Reports first came in Monday morning of the road surface sinking approximately 2 feet below grade. Within 24 hours, that gap had widened to more than 12 feet, according to CCES. The active movement is on the ground both above and below the slide. Residents should be prepared to cope with the highway closure as a longterm event. “The damage to the highway is both impressive and extensive,” reads a CCES Facebook post. “Understandably, the loss of this section of highway for any period of time in an inconvenience. Work is being done to repair and reopen this section as quickly and as safely as possible.” The last time this stretch of road saw issues of this magnitude was in 2005, but Leaming said eyes are always on the area, which is prone to problems. “Keeping U.S. 101 on the south coast together is really an amazing feat because the highway is always wanting to shift,” Leaming said.