Haines Assembly approves Beach Road debris removal contract, geologists to continue investigation and safety monitoring

The Haines Borough Assembly voted in a special meeting Thursday to award a contract for Beach Road debris removal to Southeast Roadbuilders. As KHNS’ Corinne Smith reports, the work would begin July 6th to excavate and replace the public road through the slide area, and the investigation by geologists continues into the cause and hazards of the landslide.

 

Mayor Douglas Olerud says the project will just focus on the public road, excavating two to nine feet down to the original road, but it is still temporary.

“To clear the slide debris off of Beach Road down to its existing surface, and then also cut back up on the uphill slope to put in an area where we won’t have large amount of debris flowing back onto the road,” Mayor Olerud said. “So this is a temporary measure to allow better access for the Beach Road residents as well as allowing power and utilities to be reinstalled to the Beach Road area.”

Under the contract, Southeast Roadbuilders will also create sloped banks on both sides, and drainage ditches around the road. The project will cost close to $170,000 dollars, paid for by the Borough and 75% reimbursed by FEMA and 25% by the State of Alaska. The rock and soil debris will then be hauled to Community Waste Solutions, weighed as per FEMA protocols, then used to cover the landfill. 

“When you have a landfill, they need to have you do your layers,” said Mayor Olerud. “You need to cover with soil to keep the birds in the bears and things like that. And so this will just be soil that they’ll be using for their ongoing mitigation at the dump.”

The mayor says the risk to safety in the area is being closely monitored by the geotechnical firm Landslide Technology and the state Department of Transportation. He says although there are still outstanding questions about the risks of another slide, they’ve deemed it safe for ground crews to begin work immediately. 

“We’re meeting with them once a week, and they do it. And so I’m making sure that the decisions that we’re making are within the safety protocols that they have set up and advised us on based on their knowledge of the area. And so safety is at the top of our list in that area, that’s why it’s taking so long.”

Some residents have complained the road and restoring power have taken too long, while others are concerned about the safety of the area and wanted to wait for more information from the geological surveys.

So far, the safety forecast is looking good. George Machan, a lead engineer with Landslide Technology, says their surveyors were on the ground monitoring last week, and judged it low enough risk for construction work to operate. 

“Last week as we walked around the landslide, there were no active signs of sliding,” said Machan. “Now that that doesn’t mean it won’t occur. It is a hazardous condition. But fortunately, with the weather cooperating, and here we are in the summer months, that very likely will have, you know, very small levels of hazard.”

Portland, Oregon-based Landslide Technology surveyors will also be on the ground next week continuing their investigation, and would be monitoring as debris removal work gets underway. 

“We’ll have a crew up on the hill looking at the landslide features, but we’ll also have a senior geologist down on the road, and that person will be providing any input to the contractor, and to the borough.”

Machan says Southeast Roadbuilders will have a safety plan as well, and a “spotter” watching the hill during work hours to raise the alarm if needed. Southeast Roadbuilders have not provided further details on their safety plan that was submitted to the Borough. 

Mayor Olerud says Beach Road residents will have 48 hours notice about access to their property as debris removal work is going on.

Roger Schnabel with Southeast Roadbuilders said via email road access will be closed during operations (7am – 5pm) except for emergencies, in which case a ramp would be put in place within 30 minutes. At the close of day, a temporary road will be opened, provided the underlying material will support this type of  traffic. Shnabel says they expect the project to take 7-10 days for excavation, 1-2 days for surfacing 1-2 days for clean-up, culvert flushing and shaping of roadway.

The Beach Road debris removed will be trucked out, and take between six and 14 days depending on conditions, but be completed by the end of July. 

“There’s going to be a lot of truck traffic,” said Mayor Olerud. “And so people looking at the truck route from Beach Road to the dump, there’s going to be a lot of trucks going back and forth. I think to do it in six days, you’re looking at 100 truckloads a day. And also people go into the dump on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, there’s going to be a waiting time.”

Last December’s heavy rainstorms and landslide killed 2 people, destroyed 9 homes, and damaged dozens more around the Haines Borough, and recovery is ongoing. 

 

(Update: This article has been updated with access information for residents from Southeast Roadbuilders)