HAWKINS COUNTY, Tenn. — A portion of Highway 70 North that has been closed since February following a deadly landslide had its reopening pushed back to mid-to-late fall, according to the Tennessee Department of Transportation.
TDOT said the project to repair and secure that section of highway at Clinch Valley Road and SR 94 had to be pushed back because engineers recommended additional soil nail installation.
TDOT said this means more work will need to be done, and the highway will not be able to reopen on Aug. 15 as previously expected.
On Sept. 4, TDOT said it expects to project to wrap up by November.
The massive slide killed a man and hospitalized another person in late February.
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UPDATE (6/24/19):
Work continues on the SR 66 landslide repair project in Hawkins County, according to Tennessee Department of Transportation.
The due date for project completion is October 15, 2019.
ORIGINAL STORY (4/26/19):
Tennessee Department of Transportation says two contracting companies are making progress in repairing portions of SR-66 and SR-70, after landslides hit Hawkins County last February.
On SR-70, the contractor Charles Blalock and Sons, Inc. is continuing to stabilize portions of the large failure area. They are also working to divert water through the slide area westward.
And on I-66, TDOT says the contractor Summers & Taylor Inc. is starting on seven pre-approved repair areas. That project broke ground on Thursday, April 18.
The two aforementioned contractors were awarded these emergency contracts, estimated at $8,721,569 and $15,184,562 respectively, to repair the roads after devastating landslides hit the area last February.
One man was killed on SR-70 because of those landslides.
TDOT estimates the SR-70 project will be completed in August, and SR-66 will be reopened, by October 15, 2019.