Another I-40 section collapses into river: return of one-lane traffic up in

Dec. 20—A new chunk of Interstate 40 crumbled into the Pigeon River this week, dealing a blow to the anticipated reopening of one lane in each direction in January on the Haywood County route to Tennessee.

Heavy rains last week, coupled with the freeze-thaw cycle, destabilized the slope below the roadbed. The steep bank between the roadbed sloughed away, taking yet another piece of I-40 with it.

I-40 through the Pigeon Gorge will now remain closed until transportation and geotechnical engineers deem it safe for drivers to navigate a narrow, two-lane pattern in the gorge.

“It is an unfortunate situation,” NCDOT Division 14 Engineer Wanda Payne said. “It’s a new hurdle that we have to overcome in order to provide a safe facility for the travelling public.”

Geotechnical engineers were on site Thursday to determine a solution to stabilize the new location.

“We would like to open the corridor as soon as it is safe to do so,” Payne said. “We know it is a critical route for folks who live here, visit here and travel through here.”

Eyes on the ground

Unlike other sections of I-40 washed out by the ferocious Pigeon River maelstrom during Hurricane Helene, this latest section to collapse had weathered that storm OK but succumbed to later destabilizing conditions.

On the bright side, crews had noticed the early warning signs. They detected a new crack in the asphalt Monday, indicating trouble beneath the road bed. A crack monitor was quickly installed to keep tabs on whether it grew.

And grow it did.

Crews had completed shoring up destabilized sections of I-40 deemed “at risk” of more slipping with soil nails. It was all-systems-go to reopen the I-40 corridor to Tennessee with one lane in each direction by Jan. 1.

The fresh slide changed that, but doesn’t necessarily close the door on reopening lanes in the future — even though the newly collapsed edge comes precipitously close to the median that would separate the drivable lanes from a plunge into the river.

More in U.S.

How bad is it?

This newly collapsed section is now missing the outermost lane closest to the river, and half the inside lane on the eastbound direction. Had it crept much closer to the yellow line, it could have infringed on the stability of the two good westbound lanes that remain.

Keeping those westbound lanes intact is critical for the future prospects of reopening one lane in each direction. The remaining lanes are also vital for road crews doing repairs, giving them a platform to work from and move along through the otherwise hemmed in terrain.

A fix in the works

In other good news, the sections that got soil-nail treatment held fast and resisted the elements that had caused the fresh slide in another area.

Soil nails were installed at 10 other damaged locations along a four-mile stretch of I-40 near the state line in Haywood County. Engineers will continue to monitor the transition into the winter season and will recommend additional stabilization if necessary.

Wright Brothers Construction, with GeoStabilization International as a sub-contractor, was awarded a contract to stabilize the eastbound lanes and create a safe passage for one lane in each direction from Harmon Den to the state line. NCDOT staff is currently working with Wright Brothers Construction on a supplemental agreement for the new repairs.

EMEA Tribune is not involved in this news article, it is taken from our partners and or from the News Agencies. Copyright and Credit go to the News Agencies, email news@emeatribune.com Follow our WhatsApp verified Channel