Sun Road still closed

The Daily Inter Lake

Going-to-the-Sun Road in Glacier National Park remained closed Monday as cleanup

efforts continued following a series of mud slides and debris flows last week.

Going-to-the-Sun Road in Glacier National Park remained closed Monday as cleanup efforts continued following a series of mud slides and debris flows last week.

Heavy rains on Thursday and Friday triggered slides and blocked culverts in several places both east and west of Logan Pass.

The road was closed Friday morning at Avalanche Creek and Rising Sun. The east-side closure has since been relocated to the Jackson Glacier Overlook.

Friday's rainfall made this the third-wettest September on record in West Glacier, where weather statistics have been tracked since 1950.

"We received 4.4 inches of rain, compared to a 10-year mean of 2.14 inches," park spokeswoman Amy Vanderbilt said.

October started out the way September ended, with another 1.6 inches of rain and snow falling over the weekend.

The weather "prevented much progress from being made" on the cleanup, Vanderbilt said.

On Monday, engineers were evaluating conditions near the East Side Tunnel, where blocked culverts allowed water to run over the roadway.

"They're worried about potential under-cutting of the road surface," Vanderbilt said.

More rain and snow is in the forecast. A snow advisory was issued Monday for the Rocky Mountain Front, with up to five inches of snow predicted at elevations above 4,000 feet.