Highway 20 is expected to re-open Friday, June 30 at 4 p.m. west of the Sheep Creek Bridge where a mudslide washed out 150 metres of the road almost two weeks ago.
“We will be opening it to one-lane traffic,” said Leeah Reese, area roads manager with the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure at the site Thursday.
Crews and equipment have been working 24/7 to repair the site while all other traffic has been using a detour through the Rudy Johnson Bridge and Meldrum Creek Road.
An abundance of subsurface water at the site initially hampered the repair.
As part of the reconstruction, a new culvert was put in place Tuesday.
On Thursday morning, the Xeni Gwet’in Youth Wagon Trip also passed through the site, along its way to the 91st annual Williams Lake Stampede.
Buncher operator Denis Pelchat escaped after being caught in the slide at around 3 a.m. on Monday, June 19. The 61 year old climbed out of his truck and scrambled through mud and debris to safety.
Pelchat is recuperating from back surgery for injuries caused during the incident.
