RABBIT HASH — It's a landslide, but no one is a winner — especially not those who live along Boone County's rural roads.

        Boone County Fiscal Court has declared an emergency in order to award quick repair bids on two of 12 roads in the county suffering extensive damage because of landslides. The sections of Big Bone Church Road and Rabbit Hash Hill Road are slipping into a nearby creek.

Lower River Road in Boone County is one of 12 roads that have been closed. Officials say it may never open again because damage is so severe. (Patrick Reddy photo) | ZOOM |

        The damage on one road, Lower River Road, is so severe that it will probably never reopen, engineers and officials said.

        “We've been having landslides all over the county due to the rain,” said James Parsons, county administrator.

        Greg Sketch, county engineer, said he declared Big Bone Church and Rabbit Hash Hill roads an emergency after an inspection.

        “That way we don't have to go through a formal bidding process, which can be lengthy,” Mr. Sketch said.

        This will save needed time to address this safety problem and help meet the criteria for receiving reimbursement from the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet's Municipal and Rural Aid Office.

        “The road is slipping down,” said Randy Cochran, 57, who lives on Rabbit Hash Hill Road.

        “It's a big deal,” his wife Jane Cochran said, adding that she is careful on the road, but people using it as a through street don't know to take extra precautions.

        Thelen Associates Inc., an Erlanger engineering firm, has reviewed the landslide problem in the rural areas of western Boone County and created a landslide summary. The summary lists the roads affected and what needs to be done to correct them.

        “On all these roads there is a susceptibility to slip because of the way they were constructed,” Mr. Sketch said. “They weren't really constructed, they just kind of evolved over time.

        “Most of them are near a creek,” he said, adding that high creek waters hit the slope of a road, causing it to erode.

        This spring had one of the heaviest rainfalls on record in Northern Kentucky and Greater Cincinnati. In May alone in Covington, 5.66 inches of rain were recorded, 3.32 inches above normal.

        The repairs to Big Bone Church Road are expected to be done by Ford Development Corp. for $121,000. Rabbit Hash Hill Road repairs are expected to be completed by NeC Construction for $107,000.

        “Work should begin on both of them within the next two weeks,” Mr. Sketch said.

        “On Rabbit Hash Hill Road, we're continuing a wall we started two or three years ago,” Mr. Sketch said, adding the problem has spread.

        Lower River Road had to be closed recently — probably forever — because of landsliding.

        Landslides began on Lower River Road before 1989 and repairs had been done before over the years. It would cost between $2 million and $4 million to repair the damage, and county officials think it is more cost-effective to relocate the road.

        “The (pavement) on Lower River Road gave way almost immediately,” Mr. Sketch said. “If I had a vehicle or school bus on that, I have the potential of losing lives.”

        Mr. Sketch said just under $1 million has been spent on fixing roads with landslides in Boone County during the past five or six years.

        Cost estimates still have to be completed on the other 10 roads needing repairs.
       

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