Mudslide At Burn Scar Impacts Train Tracks In Weber County
Apr 18, 2019, 6:44 AM
WEBER COUNTY, Utah – Officials are monitoring a 2-year-old burn scar after a mudslide was reported Wednesday night.
A fire in 2017 that was caused by downed power lines damaged more than 20 structures at the site, including five homes. Three of those houses were destroyed.
There’s a new threat for that area after Utah’s heavy winter, and Weber County officials are concerned about potential flooding at the burn scar.
This morning #WeberCounty officials keeping an eye on the burn scar near Uintah where a mudslide was discovered last night #KSLTV pic.twitter.com/BNAehZvhuI
— Derek Petersen (@Derek_Photog) April 18, 2019
Train tracks at the site are not in operation after the slide covered them with water and debris.
The mudslide was approximately 100 feet long, 75 feet wide, and slid down about 50 feet in Weber Canyon, according to officials.
Authorities said seepage from a retention pond located above has compromised the lower tracks.
“It doesn’t look like it’s going to slide anymore,” Battalion Chief Krista Horting with the Weber Fire District said Wednesday night. ” … It’s kind of hard to tell in the dark. We’ll just have to wait and see what morning brings.”
“There’s no trains going over the tracks right now,” she added, “which I think will help with the additional sloughing.”