Rain stops work at site of Interstate 40 rock slide

By Josh Boatwright and Carol Motsinger, Asheville Citizen-Times

Crews this week hope to begin drilling rocks at the top of a massive rockslide on Interstate 40 near the Tennessee state line after rain delayed their progress over the weekend.

Heavy rains Saturday made the slide area "unstable," preventing work at the site, said Mike Patton, lead inspector with the state department of transportation.

But crews returned Sunday, attempting to move a small drill rig to the top of the rockslide area.

"There hasn't been much change" this weekend, Patton said, noting that the rains did not appear to change the arrangement of the rock debris.

The drill rig will be used for exploratory drilling, testing the stability of material near the top of the slide. The drill might also be used to bore holes in large rocks where crews can plant explosives, breaking them up for removal, he said.

Transportation officials expect it will take four months to open two lanes using the eastbound side of the highway. The DOT has said the cleanup could cost $10 million, and Gov. Bev Perdue has declared the slide an emergency.

The closure of westbound I-40 at Exit 20 in Haywood County drove substantial traffic away from the area this weekend, with travelers detouring through Asheville on Interstate 240 to Interstate 26 and also along U.S. 25-70 through Madison County.

Madison County motorists made numerous complaints over the weekend about heavy traffic on U.S. 25-70, which runs through Marshall and Hot Springs, according to emergency dispatchers. No major accidents or traffic problems were reported, dispatchers said.

Restaurants and businesses in the area have welcomed the extra traffic and travel spending.

Traffic has already fallen sharply along U.S. 276 in Haywood County, the last open stop for motorists traveling westbound on I-40.

The Aztex Fuel and Food Center near Exit 20 saw a jump in traffic for a few days after the closure, but business has fallen sharply since then, store cashier Leah Morin said.

"There's been some people who don't know about the rock slide and stop and ask directions," said Morin.

"Once everybody finds out about all this, I think they're not gonna come down here."