CDOT tracking avalanche activity, will periodically close I-70 for mitigation work
DENVER (KDVR) — Colorado Department of Transportation crews are tracking an increase in avalanche activity near the Interstate 70 mountain corridor after the Presidents Day holiday weekend.
Because of this, the department has been working to clear any slides and maintain safe travel through the mountains and opted Wednesday afternoon to close parking areas west of the Eisenhower-Johnson Memorial Tunnel because of possible slide activity. The department said the parking areas would be closed 'to keep travelers safe while the snowpack stabilizes.'
CDOT completes avalanche mitigation along I-70 in Colorado
Additionally, the department said it will be holding and turning back oversized trucks periodically while I-70 is briefly stopped for avalanche mitigation work. CDOT is also closing Loop Road on the west side of the tunnels while mitigation work is completed.
The agency shared a video of a planned, controlled avalanche triggered by CDOT crews near milepost 218 on I-70, on the known Bethel avalanche path which is east of the tunnel. CDOT said motorists on I-70 saw the cloud of powder, and said the efforts will help prevent unplanned avalanches from impacting the highway.
'When there is a high risk of avalanche danger, CDOT will close the highway at the location of the avalanche path to conduct avalanche control,' a CDOT spokesperson told FOX31 on Wednesday. 'After the highway is closed, CDOT crews bring down the unstable snow from the mountain side and clear all snow and debris from the roadway before reopening the highway to traffic. This mission was one of the many planned missions given the size of the weather event over the last few days.'
Many snow reports from the I-70 region show significant snowfall from the weekend. Many ski areas post daily snow reports early each morning — usually before 7 a.m.
Vail Mountain Resort said it has gotten 51 inches of snowfall in the past week, and 11 inches in the past 48 hours as of early Wednesday morning. Copper Mountain reported an additional 3 inches of snowfall at its mountain in the past 24 hours, with an inch of that coming overnight. Breckenridge Ski Resort also reported 14 inches of snowfall in the past 48 hours.
It's expected to keep snowing Wednesday night into Thursday in the mountains before tapering off and stopping by Friday night. The Colorado Avalanche Information Center is forecasting snow totals of up to a foot of new snow in the Northern Mountain range, 4 to 8 inches in the Central Mountains, and 2 to 4 inches in the Southern Mountains.
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