A stretch of West Lake Sammamish Parkway Southeast will be closed indefinitely while city engineers assess damage to the street and utilities from Sunday’s mudslide, according to the city of Bellevue.
The slide, which occurred after 11:45 a.m. Sunday, washed mud and water into three lakefront homes and a garage that all sit below the roadway. The slide undermined the road, exposing the underside of the road.
There are several more homes between the roadway and Lake Sammamish, but it doesn't appear that any other homes are threatened, said Mike Jackman, the city of Bellevue Utilities Interim Deputy Director.
"We think this is an isolated event and that there is no further instability," he said.
It is unknown at this time if the main break resulted in the mudslide or the mudslide compromised the area around the water main, resulting in the break, according to a city press release.
Bellevue Utilities crews made temporary repairs to a broken water main at the 500 block of West Lake Sammamish Parkway, and all but three homes have had water service restored, the city stated in a press release.
Four properties were damaged and evacuated. No injuries were reported.
Water has been restored to all but two homes, which were among those evacuated, Jackman said. The city also reported that Puget Sound Energy had been onscene on Sunday to repair damage to a gas line that had been fractured during the slide.
Neighbor Ricci Crinzi, who ran outside after her dad saw the wall of mud slide out from under main road, into the homes below and then into Lake Sammamish, said that most of the neighbors were not home when the mudslide occurred.
"There was a gushing stream of water and mud," she said. "It just looked like a river of mud."
West Lake Sammamish Parkway is closed from Northeast Second Street at Northup Way (north) to Southeast 26th Street (south) until further notice. From the south end, drivers will be detoured to Southeast 26th Street, leading to 168th and 164th avenues Southeast. From the north end, drivers will be detoured to Northup Way and Northeast Eighth Street. Local access only is permitted between Northeast Second and Southeast 26th streets.
The city reported that bus service and garbage service will be affected by the closure:
Bellevue School District bus service has been cancelled in that area of West Lake Sammamish Parkway. Parents with children who ride the bus in that area should be in contact with their child’s school to be notified when bus service will resume. Allied Waste Services may not be able to collect garbage from some homes on the Parkway, but is looking into alternate forms of collection.
