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The N.C. Department of Transportation says a fleet of 12 trucks has begun hauling debris away from the rock slide on Interstate 40 in extreme western North Carolina.
The trucks are hauling the crushed rocks and other debris to a nearby U.S. Forest Service site. The debris will be used by the DOT in future road repairs.
DOT officials say the trucks hauled 130 loads -- about the size of four large houses -- on Wednesday.
That cleared the way for another round of blasting, scheduled this afternoon or Friday. State transportation officials estimate it will take a couple weeks to blast and haul away the massive pile of rubble that tumbled down a mountainside early Oct. 25, blocking all lanes of I-40 near the North Carolina-Tennessee border.
Officials estimate it could be late January or early February before the road is reopened.
