Stunning photos show 'catastrophic failure' of Wyoming's Teton Pass

A roadway along Teton Pass, just west of Jackson, has disintegrated and washed down the mountain side Saturday, after separate incidents closed the route twice over the last two days.

A roadway along Teton Pass, just west of Jackson, has disintegrated and washed down the mountain side Saturday, after separate incidents closed the route twice over the last two days. (Wyoming Department of Transportation)


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JACKSON, Wyoming — A roadway along Teton Pass, just west of Jackson, has disintegrated and washed down the mountain side Saturday, after separate incidents closed the route twice over the last two days.

Wyoming Department of Transportation shared the section has "catastrophically failed, and a long-term closure is expected."

Officials say they were working to construct a detour around the damage, "but the landslide continued to move, taking out the whole road."

This is the same area where workers put a temporary patch on the road, after a large crack appeared across both lanes of travel, dropping 8 inches in some places, according to a press release. The geology department was said to be investigating the cause and monitoring the area, but that section of road was opened later Thursday.

On Friday, a mudslide closed the road, luckily halting all traffic across the compromised roadway just 3 miles away. Crews were working to clear the debris, a press release said, but mud and debris kept flowing into the road, "overwhelming the channeled drainage ditch and culvert."

The Department of Transportation said that no one was hurt in the most recent failure, and no equipment was damaged. The department is working on a long-term solution, but no specifics have yet been released.

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