The Washington State Department of Transportation opened state Route 410 yesterday night, Dec. 23, after just two days of emergency work.

The highway closed on Dec. 10 when an atmospheric river hit Washington state and the White River overflowed; Washington State Department of Transportation employees said the water came up to their headlights at the deepest point at the closure, located at milepost 38.

But Boise Creek jumped its banks a day later, and the usually tame body of water took out some of the sediment underneath the road, collapsing the eastbound lane.

This cut off the town of Greenwater from its closest neighbor. Greenwater Fire Chief Paul Sowers organized twice-daily convoys that brought people from the town of about 130 residents into and out of Enumclaw for supplies.

The convoys stopped on Dec. 16, when automatic traffic lights were installed to alternate traffic in the westbound lane, which was altered to reduce weight on the damaged roadway.

WSDOT began work on Monday, Dec. 22; the department did not provide any sort of timeline for when the highway could open, but a press release announced the highway opened the following night.

“Our maintenance and construction teams moved quickly once conditions allowed, working around the clock to assess damage and make these repairs,” Steve Strand, WSDOT engineering manager for Snohomish and King counties, said in the press release. “Good weather, strong coordination between WSDOT groups and a dedicated contractor allowed us to reopen SR 410 sooner than expected.”

The Crystal Mountain Resort opened Dec. 20 for its 2025/2026 snow season with limited operations; the resort did not immediately respond to questions about if the resort will return to regular operations now that the highway is open.