Highway 95 moving, Deep Creek Loop remains closed

March 23, 2017

Location of Tuesday's mud slide just south of Mountain Meadows Road. As of 8 p.m. today, Highway 95 at mile 498.6 six miles south of Bonners Ferry remains down to one lane of traffic with flaggers after a major mud slide Tuesday evening. The good news is that delays have typically been of just a few minutes in duration. The highway could remain restricted for several days as mud continues to ooze into the roadway, and problems could be exacerbated as up to an inch of snow is expected by Friday morning before turn to all rain by around 11 a.m. Anywhere from a tenth to a quarter inch of rain is expected to fall on Friday, and intermittent rain is expected to continue through most of next week, with rain likely on Monday and Wednesday. Deep Creek Loop, which was shut down at 12:11 a.m. Wednesday near the railway trestle by Mirror Lake Golf Course after a major fissure formed in the road surface due to flooding, also remains closed, and is unlikely that it will be reopened very soon. According to Boundary County Road and Bridge assistant superintendent Renee Nelson, the repairs required are such that it's not possible to repair a single lane at a time, allowing traffic to alternate, but will have to be finished completely before the road can be reopened. According to Nelson, bids are currently being sought and it could be several days before work gets underway. Despite the closure, motorist had been moving barriers set out by road and bridge personnel and attempting to drive through. Today, the portable barriers initially set out were replaced by concrete jersey barriers.