Yellow Pages
NEWHALEM — Highway 20 will reopen for traffic through to Diablo at 4 p.m. today, the state Department of Transportation said.
The small town near Ross Lake has been cut off since Saturday because of avalanche danger on the slopes above roadway, also known as the North Cascade Highway.
DOT crews had been keeping an eye on 11 avalanche chutes on a five-mile stretch between the two small communities, concerned that unstable snow could slide onto the highway.
The state’s avalanche expert has assessed the slopes in question and finally gave the go ahead this morning to reopen the highway to Diablo, said DOT spokesman Dustin Terpening.
Diablo is home to employees of Seattle City Light—between 25 and 30 families—and the Diablo Learning Center. Last winter, the state closed the highway to remove five snow slides blocking the roadway.
One of the slides hit a state transportation truck.
The highway generally closes most winters about 7 miles east of Diablo and that closure to Mazama is still in effect.
For information, call 360-707-5056 or log onto http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/passes/northcascades.
