Polk County US-64 Rockslide Update For January 13

 

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - Construction crews with Charles Blalock and Sons hauled off 1540 tons of slide debris from the project on Tuesday and another 1100 tons today as workers continued hand scaling the eastern side of the slope to remove loose boulders and debris.  Hauling and scaling operations will continue throughout the remainder of the week as drilling crews prepare to begin operations on the eastern side of the slope.

 

TDOT maintenance crews continued their work along the west side of the US64 Corridor removing rock overhangs, improving shoulders and clearing debris while the road is closed.

 

US-64 in Polk County is closed at mile marker 17.6 due to a major rockslide near the Ocoee 2 Dam. A portion of Little Frog Mountain slid into the roadway on November 10, 2009. The contractor plans to continue working daylight hours on a seven day a week schedule, weather permitting, until the project is completed. The roadway is scheduled to reopen to traffic on March 31, 2010.

 

Motorists traveling to the area from Chattanooga or Cleveland should take I-75 North to Exit 60 (SR-68, Sweetwater) and follow SR-68 South through Monroe County and into Ducktown in Polk County. Those traveling from North Carolina are advised to take US-74 to SR-68 North at Ducktown through Polk County then onto I-75 at Sweetwater in Monroe County.

 

Motorists may also utilize a route through northern Georgia to travel around the rockslide area. From Copperhill/McCaysville at the Georgia State Line take Georgia Route 5 to U.S. Highway 76 to U.S. Highway 411 north to the Tennessee state line and on into Cleveland.

 

TDOT is providing a live look at the work underway to clear the rockslide via a time-lapse camera accessible by logging onto TDOT’s US-64 Rockslide web page (http://bit.ly/1Tlc8m) where you can also sign up to receive the weekly US-64 Rockslide newsletter.