After an unexpected mudslide pushed dirt and mud over a road in Richhill Township, the end of a lengthy cleanup process is finally approaching.

A segment of Bristoria Road, between Claylick Road and Whitethorn Run Road, was closed to traffic Jan. 11 because of the slide. Since then, weather and other delays have pushed back reopening the public road.

Additionally, with Bailey Mine in the vicinity of the incident, Consol Energy was brought in for the cleanup process, according to Consol Energy Spokesman Zachery Smith.

“The reason why [Consol Energy] is involved is [the hill] slipped onto a state road so [Pennsylvania Department of Transportation] is obviously involved,” Smith said. “[But] we had mining activity in the area. We’re not claiming it was subsident; we have had slips like this in that area so [it could be] unstable soil.”

Though Smith said it is unknown if action at the Bailey Mine caused the landslide, he said weather could be a contributing factor.

“If you remember back in January, [we had] real heavy rains,” Smith said. “Then we got snow, then it melted off, and then we got more heavy rains and that was really [the triggering of] this particular instance.”

Following the slide, which Smith said obscured a couple hundred yards of roadway, Consol Energy was made known of the situation within the same week.

“We were notified probably the day after [the slide]” Smith said. “The hope was to get it cleaned up and at least have one lane open, so it wasn’t a complete closed road.”

Two months later, the road is still closed and Smith said poor weather is one reason for the lengthy delay.

“Weather was still challenging to get equipment in there,” Smith said. “I think any instance like this, where the guys working on it [need to be] safe, definitely delayed it.”

Additionally, since Bristoria Road is a public road, PennDOT is involved in the process, although PennDOT Spokeswomen Valerie Petersen said cleanup responsibility falls primarily upon Consol Energy. With the added presence of PennDOT, Smith said that has also added time to the project.

“I think just because of the nature of working with PennDOT and private companies, we had to kind of work things out… like who was in charge of the site, what equipment is being used and what crews [are being used,]” Smith said.

Finally, according to Smith, downed powerlines in the area have further complicated the process.

“The power company had to come in and do work on them to ensure safety and nobody would lose power,” said Smith. “I think that took 3 weeks, maybe a month, for them to kind of do all their work, which had to be done before any crews could get in there to clear off the road.”

Now, with all causes of delays finally dealt with, Smith said crews will begin operating on the road and estimates reopening the road completely for motorists within the next week or two.