In October of 2009, a massive landslide in the Nile Valley, near Yakima, Washington, took out a portion of Washington SR 410 and impacted the Naches River as well. This video from WSDOT shows what emergency response was required to get temporary traffic restored on a detour and get a more permanent detour constructed.
Project Related
Bingham Canyon Mine Opens Access Road After Landslide
Access into the Bingham Canyon Mine pit has been restored for the first time since the mega landslide moved 165 million tons of material. Rio Tinto has moved 14 million tons of that material to […]
Geologic Hazards
Landslide Causes Train to Derail into Mississippi River
Four engines pulling a freight train derailed July 9 and landed in the Mississippi River after hitting a landslide or major rockfall. The accident happened near Guttenburg in northeastern Iowa. Two workers on the train were injured, one was rescued by boat. The engines are now leaking diesel fuel and transmission oil into the river, but crews are on scene to attempt to contain the contamination which has apparently spread 5 miles downstream. Two ethanol tankers derailed as well but do not appear to be leaking. Several rail cars carrying grain have spilled also. There are 75 cars still on the track. Via Reuters and The Gazette (Cedar Rapids, IA). (Photo credit: Orlan Love/The Gazette)
Failures
Major Slope Failure at Yeager Airport in West Virginia
There was a significant slope failure at the Yeager Airport near Charleston, West Virginia last week. A 2005 project to create an Engineered Material Arresting System (EMAS) at the end of the runway required a […]