NEAH BAY — Crews had opened one lane of Neah Bay’s only paved access road Tuesday evening after a large rock slide hit state Highway 112 near Wilson Road at Milepost 5 and blocked the road late Monday.
The state Department of Transportation opened the alternating lane by 4:30 p.m. Tuesday. A crew is expected to return this morning to continue removing debris.
The slide closed access to the Makah reservation at Cape Flattery at 8:50 p.m. Monday. The only other way out is on snow-covered dirt roads.
“It’s a little bit of a struggle,” said Neah Bay Police Chief Sam White, earlier Tuesday.
The rock and mud debris covered the entire eastbound lane of the highway, and portions of the westbound lane.
The impact of the slide cracked the pavement in both lanes.
Emily Pace, DOT spokeswoman, said it wasn’t clear whether or not both lanes would reopen today.
“We don’t have an idea yet,” Pace said. “They have quite a bit of work ahead of them.”
Before the alternating lane was opened, the community was running short of gasoline and water.
It has imposed a 10-gallon-per-vehicle fuel restriction.
“Also, we’re in a water shortage due to the water being frozen,” White said, adding that residents have been asked to conserve.
The town held an emergency management meeting Tuesday morning to address the road closure, White said.
One of the primary concerns was hospital access and medical supplies.
A contingency plan was in place, White said, with a mutual aid agreement between Neah Bay and Clallam Bay to physically transfer a patient across the slide zone from one ambulance to the next.
Some stranded
Meanwhile, about 20 Neah Bay residents were stranded east of the road closure, White said.
Andrea Winck, who lives in Neah Bay and works at Makah Forestry Enterprise, said small vehicles were squeezing around the road block earlier Tuesday, with about three to four inches to spare.
White said road crews stopped letting small cars through the closure because the slope is too unstable.
“I think people are probably concerned, but we’re kind of used to dealing with this,” Winck said, recalling a sinkhole a couple of years ago that blocked the same road.
“I feel safe. I don’t really feel frantic or anything . . . I think we’ll be fine.”
The community — among those in the West End that were hit hard by last weekend’s snowfall — was still digging itself out on Tuesday.
White said that the residential streets are roads were still very slippery.
Snow was falling in Neah Bay on Tuesday afternoon, said Meri Parker, owner of Ozett Associates LLC and a member of several boards and advisory committees in Neah Bay.
“It’s absolutely gorgeous, but enough is enough,” Parker said.
Parker was hopeful that the highway would reopen late Tuesday.
“A lot of last-minute shopping needs to be done,” she said.
Winck said that a local store was down to its last turkey, but she wasn’t too concerned about a serious supply shortage there because neighbors support each other.
“I don’t think there is too much worry about food shortage,” Winck said. “I think people are prepared for it.”
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-417-3537 or at rob.ollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
