Idaho
‘Catastrophic landslide’ closes critical mountain highway between Wyoming and Idaho
A critical highway linking Idaho and Wyoming has closed indefinitely after a portion of the road cracked and then collapsed in a “catastrophic landslide” Saturday, officials said.
Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon said in a post on Facebook there is no estimated timeline for reopening Teton Pass, which links Victor, Idaho, and Jackson, Wyoming.
The initial crack appeared Thursday morning across both lanes of travel, the Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) said in a post on Facebook at the time.
The crack across lanes dropped vertically roughly 8 inches in some places, causing unsafe driving conditions. A patch was put in place and traffic resumed until a mudslide in a different location on Friday closed the road.
Saturday morning, the roadway where the initial crack happened collapsed, WYDOT said, adding that the roadway had “catastrophically failed, and a long term closure is expected.”
“WYDOT crews, along with contract crews from Evans Construction, were working in the area to construct a detour around the damage, but the landslide continued to move, taking out the whole road,” WYDOT added. “No crews were hurt in the process, and no equipment was damaged.”
Gordon said Saturday that he had met with WYDOT and Wyoming Office of Homeland Security officials to coordinate a response to the “catastrophic landslide.”
“I am grateful for the efforts of WYDOT staff to protect public safety during this developing situation, and am thankful no one was injured during this incident,” the governor said.
Work to repair the cracked roadway and mudslide had been anticipated to last into Saturday, according to the Department of Transportation, and then the cracked section of the roadway collapsed.
“WYDOT engineers, surveyors and geologists mobilized quickly to try to maintain highway viability as long as possible, but catastrophic failure could not be avoided. WYDOT remains on site decisively engaged on fixing the road and restoring connectivity to the Teton Valley,” WYDOT Director Darin Westby said in a statement.
WYDOT says it is reviewing long term solutions and repairs to the highway and Westby urged the public to stay away from the site until it was stabilized.
The Teton Pass corridor “serves as a critical commuter route and facilitates the transport of goods and services that are lifelines to the growing regional economies in Wyoming and Idaho,” according to the US Department of Transportation.
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Idaho
Obituary for Betty Pearl Day at Eckersell Funeral Home
Idaho
U of Idaho murder suspect Bryan Kohberger investigated in 2nd home invasion attack
Idaho
Bryan Kohberger investigated over nearby home invasion year before alleged slayings of 4 University of Idaho students
Idaho murder suspect Bryan Kohberger was once investigated in connection to a chilling home invasion that took place mere miles from where he allegedly slaughtered four college students inside their off-campus housing in 2022, according to a new report.
New information about the accused killer comes after ABC News obtained bodycam footage of police responding to a suspected home invasion in nearby Pullman, Wash., in October 2021 — more than a year before the University of Idaho students were stabbed to death.
“I heard my door open and I looked over, and someone was wearing a ski mask and had a knife,” a frightened woman told police.
“I kicked the s–t out of their stomach and screamed super loud, and they like flew back into my closet and then ran out my door and up the stairs.”
The alleged incident — which took place just 10 miles from the gruesome slayings in Moscow, Idaho — happened at 3:30 a.m., the woman told police, adding that the masked intruder was silent the whole time.
Her roommate immediately called the police, the outlet reported, but the case was left unsolved as police were left without a suspect or evidence at the time.
The terrifying incident shared eerie similarities with the gruesome quadruple University of Idaho murders.
Kohberger, 29, is accused of butchering students Ethan Chapin, 20, Xana Kernodle, 20, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, and Madison Mogen, 21, around 4 a.m. inside their off-campus house on Nov. 13, 2022.
A surviving housemate later told police she saw a masked man with “bushy eyebrows” fleeing the house after overhearing cries and sounds of a struggle.
Kohberger, a criminology Ph.D. student at Washington State University, was arrested at his parents’ Pennsylvania home on Dec. 30 and charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary — charges he has since pleaded not guilty.
Thirteen days later he was named a person of interest in the Pullman case, ABC reported, but is no longer considered a suspect.
“We have no reason or evidence to believe he was involved in this burglary at this time,” Pullman police told the outlet, citing a height difference between the alleged attackers.
While Kohberger is 6 feet tall, the alleged attacker in the Pullman incident was described as being 5’3′ to 5’5′. The accused stabber was also not yet enrolled at Washington State University at the time of the 2021 incident, the outlet reported.
The case is now closed but remains unsolved, police said.
“My family and I have been frustrated that the case was not investigated more in-depth or resolved,” the victim in the break-in told the outlet.
Kohberger’s highly anticipated trial is slated to begin in August and last through November.
The lengthy trial, which was moved to Idaho’s capital of Boise, will include two phases — one to determine his guilt or innocence, and the other, if he’s found guilty, to determine whether he should receive the death penalty.
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