Highway 97 rock slide blasting planned through May, road won’t fully reopen for several months

Work is ongoing to ensure the slope along Highway 97 where a major rockslide occurred last summer is safe.

Blasting at the site of the August 28 rockslide north of Summerland has been ongoing periodically since the debris came down on the highway, though the final phases of that work is scheduled to be completed soon.

“Over the winter and spring, crews have been working hard out there in some not-so-great conditions, blasting out rock material and removing material. To date, we’ve removed approximately 42,000 cubic metres [of material], and we’re still targeting around the 60,000 cubic metre mark to remove from the overall mass,” Steve Sirett, the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure’s executive director for the Southern Interior, told Vernon Matters.

“We expect that most of that blasting will be complete by the end of May and only a few more longer closures are required for that.”

He added another four or five blasts are needed at the site, which will require the full closure of the highway. Updated schedules on the times on these operations will be posted to DriveBC.

Geotechnical and engineering work was ongoing at the slide site, with plans for long-term stabilization of the slope still being developed, though Sirett said at the time that crews were preparing to do some drilling and anchoring at the site once the blasting is done.

“There’s a few things we’re trying to do to stabilize [the slope], the first being removing the material. That unloads the overall weight of the mass,” Sirett explained.

“The next is drilling anchors into the slope, through the unstable material and into stable material behind it, so it acts almost like pins supporting the overall slide mass. The good news about that work is it happens on the slide and we don’t expect any lengthy closures for that, so through the summer months, we don’t expect any major closures as a result of that work.”

Sirett noted anchoring could take crews until the fall to complete, stating the highway will remain limited to single lanes in each direction until that time.

Once that work is complete, the berm supporting the slide area will be removed and a retaining wall will be built at the site.

After that is complete, the highway will be able to fully reopen, though Sirett warns that timeline is not certain and the highway may have reduced lanes until the winter.

The Transportation Ministry representative added other slopes in the area are being monitored for potential rockslide events, and assessments of any potentially risky slopes will be undertaken as needed.

Sirett also reminds travellers to check DriveBC for updates on the project and closures, and to be cautious and follow all traffic control measures when driving through construction zones.