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Construction work on access road to Old Fort will begin Friday at landslide site

Photo Courtesy Noah Abel

Construction of a temporary access road will begin Friday at the site of a major landslide that cut off access to Old Fort in northeast British Columbia.

The B.C. Ministry of Transportation says crews will begin building a two-lane access road after a slide last month tore away part of the only route in and out of the community.

Work is expected to take up to two weeks, depending on weather and safety conditions.

According to the ministry, crews will first establish a secure construction zone, including fencing, before using heavy equipment to move slide material south of the original road.

The previous route was pushed more than 150 metres during the slide.

Equipment being readied to work on landslide rear Old Fort, while residents asked to renew Emergency Services Supports Picture of the Old Fort landslide courtesy of DriveBC.

The province says there will be no safe access across the slide area while construction is underway and warns that ignoring traffic control and work-zone restrictions could result in fines.

An evacuation order was issued on April 20 after the landslide hit Old Fort, a community of about 150 people. It marked the third landslide to affect the area since 2018.

The Ministry of Transportation says updates will be provided as conditions change or when new information becomes available.