Associated Press
MAPLE FALLS — The highway to the Mount Baker Ski Area was closed early Friday after a mudslide blocked a culvert and forced water over the road, state transportation officials said.
Starting about 1 a.m., only emergency vehicles were being allowed through the four-mile section of Highway 542 near this hamlet about halfway between Mount Baker and Bellingham, according to a Transportation Department statement. No detour was available.
The statement said a mudslide blocked a drainage culvert 25 feet below the winding, two-lane highway, causing water to overflow across the road.
Maintenance crews at the scene found that the eastbound shoulder was being undermined, and the statement said the damage also could extend to the eastbound lane.
A repair plan was pending.
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