More than thirty mudslides disrupted rail service and halted passenger trains between Vancouver and Vancouver, B.C., on Sunday and Monday.
Repeated slides near Felida blocked one of Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway’s two lines operating between Vancouver and Seattle, BNSF spokesman Gus Melonas said.
The first slide occurred just south of Felida at 1 p.m. Sunday. A second slide occurred in the same area at 3 p.m. Monday. Crews cleared debris from the latest slide, which was 3 feet deep and covered 20 feet of track, within a couple hours, Melonas said.
Freight traffic was moving, but BNSF placed a 48-hour moratorium on passenger operations through 6:58 p.m. Wednesday due to safety concerns. Amtrak is using alternative modes of transportation to move passengers along the Vancouver to Vancouver, B.C., corridor.
Crews continue to inspect the slide-prone area and geotech engineers are studying the bank stability, Melonas said. The road bed was deemed safe for freight traffic, he said.
The Vancouver-area slides were just two of the 31 slides around the state.
Slides between Seattle and Everett shut down freight and passenger operations Monday as crews used cranes to remove debris from the tracks. One slide area covered 60 feet of track, with debris 10 feet deep, Melonas said. Trees as tall as 60 feet came toppling down on the tracks, he said.
Crews were called off that site Monday night as a safety precaution, but were to resume work this morning.
The slides were caused by recent storms in the region, Melonas said. Heavy rains added weight to already heavily saturated soils. The top layers of soil dry out when the rain stops, but the ground below doesn’t get a chance to dry before the next heavy rainfall comes through, he said.
