What started off as a pothole turned into washed-out highway, affecting one of the main routes that connects to Saskatoon and detouring commuters near Central Butte, Sask.
The mayor of Central Butte said some motorists first noticed Highway 19, northwest of Moose Jaw, was starting to wash away on the evening of April 12, 2023.
“Some people were coming back from Saskatoon, and they noticed a big hole or sinkhole and they stopped and fortunately they didn’t end up going through it,” said Grant Berger.
The Saskatchewan Ministry of Highways stated in an email response that fast melt has impacted some highways in southwestern part of the province.
“A section of Highway 19 between Chaplin and Central Butte has been washed out,” according to the statement.
“Two culverts in the area were lost due to a considerable amount of water.”
Crews are continuing to monitor the situation and engineers are working on a plan, however, the province stated there are some geotechnical challenges with repairs. This presents a challenge for commuters who use the highway for their travels to and from Saskatoon.
“This is going to be inconvenience for the next few months … the big thing is fertilizer transportation,” said Berger.
“As we’re getting into spring, we’re a main agricultural area and that’s the main artery to get products from the Saskatoon area down to us. (It will) complicate some logistics.”
The Ministry of Highways stated there is no timeline as of yet, but work will be tendered for repairs as quickly as possible.