While Carbon County officials have minimal to do with the work to repair a rockslide that shut down Route 209 between Nesquehoning and Jim Thorpe, they are praising the response efforts of all parties that have been involved since the century-old wall gave out on Halloween.

On Thursday, commissioners Chairman Mike Sofranko commended county Emergency Management Agency Director Zach Gilbert for keeping county officials in the loop regarding the events that took place immediately after the wall collapse and the state efforts over that weekend.

“Last week was tough,” Sofranko said. “Things just happened and it developed really quickly.”

Within hours of the rockslide on Oct. 31, Nesquehoning and Jim Thorpe police and fire police, as well as Gilbert, set up perimeters and detours to keep motorists safe, while Pennsylvania Department of Transportation officials, engineers and contractors came in to assess the problem and begin planning for the repair.

Route 209, which is a main artery connecting the Panther Valley with the Jim Thorpe, Lehighton and Palmerton areas, will remain closed for approximately 6 to 8 weeks while PennDOT works to stabilize the rock wall and rebuild the road.

Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway operations, which were canceled Oct. 31 and Nov. 1 after the rockslide covered a portion of its track, shifted operations to its Nesquehoning Regional Railroad Station and has been running daily trips to Lehigh Gorge State Park from that location.

Sofranko thanked Gilbert for a recent meeting the brought together Nesquehoning, Jim Thorpe, Carbon County and state officials to get a full update on what the plans are moving forward.

That meeting covered how traffic is affected and how the detours are affecting neighboring communities; how Jim Thorpe and surrounding businesses are being affected and what this looks like moving ahead.

In addition, Calvin Ulshafer, PennDOT’s Transportation Construction Manager 2, was there to provide updates on PennDOT’s plan for the repairs, Sofranko said, adding that officials will receive periodic updates as repairs continue.

He noted that state Rep. Doyle Heffley has been in constant communication with the state to make sure this remains a top priority.

Commissioner Wayne Nothstein said that once the work is complete with the road and rail line, the county will also need to assess the damage to the fencing that ran between the rail line and D&L Trail.

Sofranko asked for residents’ patience as heavy equipment is brought through Jim Thorpe to help with the repair, as well as motorists traveling the detours.

“We realize that traffic is backing up in Lansford as people are trying to make the left-hand turn and go up the hill into Summit Hill,” he said. “That was all brought to the state’s attention as to how they could help with resources and signage to help that.”

Nothstein added that during the meeting, mutual aid agreements for EMS and fire services were also being made.

“One thing that was stressed at our meeting was from EMS because of travel distances and everything,” Nothstein said. “They are fully manning a crew on the other side of Nesquehoning because of delays in response so they have a major expense there.”

He urged residents to support EMS services, as well as fire companies because costs keep rising.