Mudslide closes westbound Highway 18 at Highway 167

Friday morning commuters up westbound Highway 18 in Auburn found themselves forced to detour to Peasley Canyon Road after a landslide closed all three lanes of traffic near the West Valley Highway and Highway 167.

The detour created backups of up to 2.5 miles during Friday morning’s commute, according to a Washington State Department of Transportation media release.

The slide occurred at 10:40 p.m. Thursday and brought down mud, rock and debris onto the highway, just south of Kent.

State DOT crews were on site inspecting the slide Friday morning and determined that it is still moving, and pressing against the barrier separating the eastbound and westbound lanes.

There are no plans to close the eastbound lanes, but the westbound lanes will likely be closed until Friday afternoon, at the earliest. Crews are on hand to clean up and monitor the slide.

“We want to open these lanes as quickly as possible,” said state DOT Assistant Regional Administrator Dave McCormick in the media release. “But we need to make sure we don’t compromise the safety of our workers and ensure the road remains safe for drivers.”

According to the WSDOT, the hillside began moving Thursday morning when a much smaller slide brought down debris near the westbound lanes. Crews closed the right lane and monitored the slope.

Traffic is being rerouted to the West Valley Highway and Peasley Canyon Road. Drivers on Highway 167 who want to head westbound are advised to access Interstate 5 at State Route 516 (Kent-Kangley Road) in Kent.

Highway 18 is a well-traveled route for commuters and freight haulers commuting from east and south King County.

For more information and updates, go to state DOT Web site at www.wsdot.wa.gov/construction/2010/today.htm.