At Least A Month Before
Interamericana Sur Will
Be Completely Opened
Alma continues to affect
residents and visitors
of the Southern Zone as
work to repair the
Interamericana Sur, the
main route to and from
San José to major
centres like Pérez
Zeldrón and the Panaman
border, continues at a
slow pace.
The Ministerio de Obras
Públicas y Transportes (MOPT)
has to deal with some 34
landslides that occurred
last week in the stretch
of highway between
kilometre 101 and 120,
in the area known as
Cerro de la Muerte, near
Pérez Zeledón.
Some minor problems are
also being reported
between kilometres 60
and 98.
Most of the landslides
are being cleaned up,
but making the situation
worse is some 300 to 500
metres of road at
kiloemetre 114 that was
completely washed away
and will require a
bridge to be
constructed. The MOPT is
evaluating the
construction of a Bailey
bridge.
For the meantime, MOPT
machinery is filling the
washed away part of the
road and installing
pipes to drain the
water. However, it will
be days before the earth
can be compacted and
depending on the climate
conditions of the coming
days, before a
determination can be
made if the road can be
reopened at that point.
Initially the MOPT has
said that the highway
would be re-opening by
the end of the week
(tomorrow, Friday),
however, that is now an
impossibility and MOPT
officials are saying now
that it will be at least
another week.
Traffic to and from the
Southern Zone is being
rerouted through the
only other route, the
Costanera, from Jacó to
Quepos to Dominical.
The trip from San José
to Pérez Zeledón is
eight hours at least,
more if conditions at
the Parrita bridge don't
improve, as well as
problems on the 20
kilometre stretch
between Quepos and
Dominical, that takes up
to two hours in best
conditions.
According to Karal
González, MOPT minister,
engineers are evaluating
which areas need shoring
up and reinforcements
before the road can be
opened again.
Minister González said
that it will be least a
month before the
Interamericana Sur will
be back to normal.
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