All of the current landslide shown in the picture, above, occurred below CA-49 and was not immediately visible to motorists. The slide evident above the highway took place earlier and did not deposit any material upon the road.

DOWNIEVILLE - On Wednesday, January 18th, California Highway Patrol informed the Sierra County Sheriff's Department of a landslide on Depot Hill, approximately 12 miles south of Downieville on CA-49. The slide occurred between the bridge over the North Yuba River and Lager Beer Point, jeopardizing the stability of the southbound lane.

To address this safety issue, Caltrans engineers are now working on the design of a structure allowing the southbound lane to reopen. Given the urgent nature of the problem, a special director's order will be issued once the design work is complete and a contract for construction work will be executed.

According to the Public Information Officer Steve Nelson of Caltrans' District 3 in Marysville, securing a contract for the emergency repair "will take a couple of weeks."

Nelson also said Caltrans will provide additional updates once the emergency contract has been given the green light.

In the meantime, the southbound lane houses a stop sign for drivers to stop, look for oncoming traffic and proceed with caution down the one-lane section of the highway.

Folks traveling northbound into Downieville are also greeted with a stop sign and should stop and ensure no one is heading their way before proceeding. Hopefully, this detailed instruction will prevent more drivers from sitting at the stop sign for long periods, unaware of what to do next. Therefore each driver is at the mercy of the common sense of everyone else on the road.

Since the construction work is bound to take several weeks, if not months, to complete, traffic lights are likely to be useful. However, at this time, Caltrans has not provided an update regarding the installation of any traffic lights.

This photo, providing a closer view of the landslide on the Depot Hill grade, shows Caltrans employees in the process of assessing the predicament being faced by engineers and construction workers in a situation bound to affect motorists for months.

Photos by CHP Officer Zack Kostik provided by Sierra County Sheriff's Office