CALTRANS STARTS $14M HIGHWAY PROJECT
Drier weather on North Coast could help slide-prone area
U.S. Highway 101 at Last Chance Grade opened for the first time in days on Monday morning around 10 a.m., after being closed for days by slide activity.
“One-way traffic control is in effect and motorists should anticipate at least one-hour delays,” the agency posted on the Caltrans District 1 Facebook page on Monday. “The highway will remain open until 6 p.m. unless slide conditions change.”
Saturday and Sunday openings never occurred amid the slide activity that Caltrans said “were constant.” On Saturday, the agency estimated there were 3,000 cubic yards of debris that needed to be cleared, but that the slides remained active.
“Each dump truck can haul approximately 10 cubic yards of material at a time, but the rate of removal also depends on other factors such as hauling distance and accessibility at pick-up and disposal locations,” Caltrans District 1 spokesman Myles Cochrane said in an email. “So far, the limiting factor impacting the opening of the highway has been the dynamic and active nature of the rockfall, limiting our ability to remove slide debris.”
He said Caltrans began a $14 million emergency project that “will bring in several specialized pieces of equipment and other subcontractors to both remove slide debris and respond to the slide.” The project will also include building barriers and installing fencing that covers the entire slope.
“These measures and others have been successful for us in the past,” Cochrane said.
When Last Chance Grade is more stable, Caltrans will look for other methods of controlling the slide-prone area.
“Thankfully, due to our previous work in the area, we have already established a lot of geological intel there,” he said.
He also said this week’s weather could be helpful.
“Absolutely, drier weather is traditionally helpful,” he said explaining that landslides like the one at Last Chance Grade can be triggered by temperature fluctuations as well as precipitation. “This slide has both rock and soil, so it has remained active and dy
and dynamic, even during periods of no rain. The key is that we have 24-7 onsite monitoring and spotters in the area keeping the public and workers safe.”
The North Coast is expected to be much drier this week, a local National Weather Service meteorologist said Monday, which could give spots like Last Chance Grade time to dry out.
“For the most part, (Del Norte County is) looking dry for the next 5 to 7 days,” meteorologist Chris Burling said.
Humboldt County is expected to see “a whole lot of dry weather,” Burling said. “No chances for rain until late in the week and that looks pretty iffy.”
He said there would be more action off the coast, with choppy waters throughout the week.
“We are going to have some pretty strong winds offshore for most of the week,” Burling said, “fluctuating between small craft advisory and gale warnings.”
He said swells were expected to be in the 8- to 10-foot range out of the northwest.
Humboldt County will see chilly temperatures in the morning, with possibly the coldest day on Wednesday morning when it could approach freezing levels. Daytime highs are expected to be in the mid-50s.
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