UPDATED: New story and and more photos of this amazing slide by Natasha Carrico

Dramatic new footage by local resident, Kristin Windbigler, of Dobbyn Creek pouring over the side of a county bridge is the latest result of a series of slides that have thrust their way into the landscape of Humboldt County.  While the majority of the community had their eyes turned to first the Briceland Road slide near Whitmore Grove and then even more dramatically to the massive slide that swallowed Highway 101 bringing the main thoroughfare into the North Coast to a standstill, a tremendous mountain of soil slide off a mountain near the Alderpoint Road and smashed into Dobbyn Creek  slowly backing it up. 

The water is forming what locals are only half jokingly calling Dobbyn Lake.

Last night around 30 residents and county crew struggled to sand bag a home and the road desperately trying to save them, a county bridge, and other properties.

In spite of their efforts, one home had to be evacuated and now the diverted water is pouring over the bridge and onto the creek below.

UPDATE STARTS HERE:

Natasha Carrico, an Alderpoint resident, lives 4 to 5 miles west of the Dobbyn Creek slide. According to her:

The slide has came down into Dobbyn’s Creek creating a dam consisting of mud, rock and trees. The slide has 98% to 99% of the creek fully blocked which is creating a large back log of water. With all of the rain we had and a snow melt from the hills it’s not taking long for the water to raise at an alarming rate.

The slide as you can see from my pictures involve a very large portion of the affected mountain. One could easily compare this slide with the one that affected 101. The Dobbyn’s slide has caused the water to divert to its only available path which is straight at and through a house and across the road that connects Blocksburg to Alderpoint, and back into the creek.

With the help of many dedicated volunteers that stayed up until 3am filling sand bags, they have managed to only help direct the path of this water that is flowing at full speed. There are 3 houses at jeopardy from this slide. The first being the one already affected— that is located right before the slide and two that are just past the slide.  One of those houses is directly below the slide and sits only a few feet above the creek. If the “dam” were to let go too fast, it would possibly take that house with it. The other house does sit slightly at a higher elevation but very well could be effected if the “dam” let go. …One home does have children living in it.  [They are a] very nice family, too.

I have taken photos of the slide on the 4 and on the 5th. It has changed a lot in that time. More slide has came down. A group of trees that were standing at the bottom of the slide (they were in the slide at the base of it) are no longer there; they now lay in a tangled and broken mass that dams up the creek…. The water level was about 2’ from flooding yesterday afternoon and when I went back today again @12pm it was coming across the path of the house and the road at a depth of 1/2’ to 1’. The creek is backed up all the way to the power plant (which is about 1/4 to 1/2 miles up stream from the slide)and at the site is approx. 30-40’ deep.

You can still hear a slipping sound in the slide and loud pops and snapping of large trees. The sound of the water rushing over the road is very loud. The sounds all together … reminds you really quickly how small you are and how fierce Mother Nature can be. I was told by a unnamed [County] worker that there is not much that they can see being done to solve/fix/help the “problem.”  The slide is still active and moving. [If anything is taken out] the still moving material would fill it back in. and having to do all of that right below were the water is being dammed up would be dangerous for the workers at this point.

I haven’t heard of any “officials” coming to look a the slide so I cannot comment there if there will be any real efforts of help at any level at this point..

This slide is dangerous. If the dam lets go, there is no telling what that large amount of water is going to do. If you don’t need to drive this way, it should be avoided.

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These wonderfully informative photos taken yesterday by Natasha Carrico