Update: Idaho 55 north of Smiths Ferry closed through week, at least, after rockslide
The plan is still for a section of Idaho 55 north of Smiths Ferry to be closed through at least the rest of the week because of a rockslide last Thursday, the Idaho Transportation Department said Monday in a news release.
Crews are working on an interim solution to open the road for winter, the ITD update said. The plan includes removing boulders and mud from the hillside to construct a 20-foot-tall rock wall to reinforce the slope, and then constructing a temporary road wide enough for traffic.
“We appreciate the patience of the public as we work to reinforce the very large slide area,” said Jason Brinkman, ITD District 3 engineering manager. “Our goal is to reopen the highway as soon as possible. This is potentially dangerous work on an unstable slope. We need to take the time to ensure the safety of our construction team and eventually the traveling public once the road is reopened.”
The rockslide occurred shortly before 2 p.m. in an area of the highway south of the Rainbow Bridge where a construction project to expand and improve the road is ongoing, according to Vince Trimboli, ITD spokesperson. It’s about 20 miles south of Cascade.
There were no injuries in the incident. Trimboli said that crews were not working in the immediate area of the rockslide and that it was not caused by the construction project.
“The plan is to be completely closed through the Thanksgiving weekend, and we will provide regular updates on the progress of the project,” Trimboli said.
While the highway is closed, ITD recommends that travelers use U.S. 95 to travel north and south through western Idaho.
Thursday’s incident was the second rockslide to occur near the roughly milelong construction site this year. In March, a rockslide occurred along the same stretch of highway after melting snow was absorbed into the hillside where crews were blasting into the rock, according to an ITD blog post.
During this fall’s construction, the highway has been closed Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and open to alternating lanes of traffic all other times, according to Trimboli.
The rockslide happened to occur while the road was fully closed.
ITD had planned to close down the construction project for the winter this month, but will continue working as long as crews can, weather-permitting. “Obviously, we’ve got some additional work to do (now),” Trimboli said.
The project is expected to be completed next fall.
This story was originally published November 19, 2021 at 5:54 PM.
