Rockslide closes I-75 in Tennessee

A rockslide that sent vehicle-sized boulders tumbling onto a section of I-75 in Tennessee on Friday afternoon will likely mean detours for weeks for Michigan motorists heading to and from the Sunshine State and other Southern locales.

The rockslide in Tennessee's Campbell County, about 19 miles south of the Kentucky border, forced the closure of the highway many Michigan residents use on their travels to and from Florida. The debris initially fell into the northbound lanes at Mile Marker 142, but the entire road is closed, requiring detours that Tennessee Department of Transportation spokesman Mark Nagi estimated could add up to an extra 30 minutes each way.

No one was hurt in the rockslide, which Nagi said might have been related to the impact of freezing and thawing of the nearby hillside.

A caller to the Free Press who identified himself only as "Joe" said he and his wife opted to switch their route on a recent return trip to Michigan from Florida rather than deal with the detours.

"That's a major north/south road," he said. "I can just imagine what those detours must look like."

A $2.9 million contract has been awarded to Charles Blalock and Sons of Sevierville, Tenn., to remove debris, stabilize the slope and repair the interstate, according to the TDOT.

"The contract also stipulates the southbound lanes of I-75 will be reopened within 14 days and one lane on the northbound side will be reopened within 21 days. The entire repair project is scheduled to be complete on or before April 15, 2016," according to a TDOT news release.

Debris has been pushed toward the side of the roadway, but Nagi said the slope is not stable and "we are still getting rocks falling from that slide."

Nagi said this is not the first time something like this has occurred. A landslide affecting the southbound lanes closed a section of the road about a mile north of the current area in 2012. No injuries were reported in that incident either.

"East Tennessee has so many rolling hills and mountainous areas, this is something we have to deal with from time to time," Nagi said.

Here are the detours for the current closure as provided by TDOT:

Motorist Detours (standard vehicles)

• Motorists traveling I-75 South can take Exit 160 (Jellico). Follow US 25W / SR 297 West to SR 63 South, and then re-enter I-75 South.
• Motorists traveling I-75 North can take Exit 134 (Caryville/Lafollette). Follow US 25W north to Lafollette, continuing to Jellico, and then re-enter I-75 North.

Wide-Load and Alternate Motorist Detours

• Wide-load traffic traveling I-75 South can take Exit 29 (Corbin) in Kentucky. Follow US 25E into Tennessee, and enter I-81 at Exit 8 (Morristown/White Pine).
• Wide-load traffic traveling I-75 North can take I-40 East to I-81 North Exit 8 (Morristown/White Pine). Follow US 25E, and enter I-75 at Exit 29 (Corbin) in Kentucky.

Contact Eric D. Lawrence: elawrence@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter: @_ericdlawrence.