LITTLE ROCK, Ark – A collapsed retaining wall in front of Interstate 630 traffic is causing some concern among drivers.
The damaged section is 100 feet wide on the west side of the interstate, just below the Pine Street exit.
ARDOT recommends putting company working on Saline Co. I-30 project in breach of contract
Much of the collapsed wall currently rests on arched metal supports. Some bricks had spilled onto the shoulder before the Arkansas Department of Transportation moved them to the other side of the guardrail, with caution cones still marking where they were.
According to ARDOT, the damage was caused by heavy rains that saturated the soil behind the wall and pushed the wall outward until it collapsed.
One of the drivers who passes by the location almost every day is Tuesday Staley. She said she first noticed this retaining wall collapsing weeks ago.
“It’s an interstate highway, so people are transporting it back and forth, and with that being along 630, when is the next piece going to drop?” Staley asked.
ARDOT said what makes this section different is a depression in the road above the wall caused by a failure of the subbase, the material between the concrete and the ground.
When asked how much time elapsed between the subbase and wall failures, Ellen Coulter, media communications manager for ARDOT, said, “The best we can say is that water has likely been infiltrating the subbase.” for years and the pressure finally forced it to fail.
ARDOT begins National Work Zone Awareness Week
Coulter said geotechnical engineers are developing a repair plan.
“The main problem with saturated soil is the fact that it puts pressure on the retaining wall. That is the most immediate concern. But we can’t say there is no risk of a sinkhole,” she said in response to a text message.
“Get ahead of the game, don’t let this happen anywhere else,” Staley said.
He bought a new car just before the wall collapsed and says he has been “scared” to see the debris so close to the road.
“The last thing I want is for an accident to happen here near my house,” Staley said.
When asked if this type of road failure that contributed to the collapse is something they can routinely inspect, ARDOT officials said, “It will be monitored on a regular basis.”
Crews respond to train derailment on Highway 79 northeast of Stuttgart
ARDOT could not answer how many miles of this wall there are along the interstate, adding that it was built in the mid-1990s.
Keynote USA
For the Latest Local News, Follow Keynote USA Local on Twitter.