Interstate 70 is closed in both directions in western Colorado after a mudslide pushed mud, water and debris across the highway Monday night.
As of 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, the highway was closed between exit 97, near Silt and exit 105, near New Castle. A detour is taking drivers onto U.S. 6, the Colorado Department of Transportation said, warning of delays.
There is no estimated time for reopening.
Flash flooding also shut down other streets along Peach Valley Road, which is also known as County Road 214, the Garfield County Sheriff’s Office said. County Road 214 was flooded at the intersection of County Road 262, northeast of Coal Ridge High School, and both roads were closed due to swift moving water and multiple logs in the road, the sheriff’s office said.
More rain is forecast on the Western Slope on Tuesday and Wednesday, forecasters at the National Weather Service office in Grand Junction said. Heavy rainfall could trigger runoff, especially in and below burn scars, where vegetation that would normally absorb rainfall has been stripped away.
While rain showers have been a relief for parched western Colorado, a slow moving storm system triggered several mudslides last weekend that blocked roads and stranded 21 people.
Storms will reach the Front Range and Eastern Plains this week and with major fires still burning in the state, meteorologists are warning Coloradans to check the weather report before venturing out.
