Highway 28 closed due to sewer line break

State Route 28 between Sand Harbor and the junction with Highway 50 on the east shore of Lake Tahoe has been closed due to a sewer line break, and will not reopen for at least three days.

According to Scott Magruder, public information officer for the Nevada Department of Transportation, the break happened early Saturday morning, and washed out a 10-20 foot section of roadway near the Skunk Harbor trailhead, two miles south of Sand Harbor.

"Once the water started coming out, it undermined the road, making it completely impassible," Magruder said. "We know we need to get it opened up as soon as it can."

The pipe, owned by the Incline Village General Improvement District, transports treated sewage from Incline Village to Carson Valley. Magruder said no one was working on the pipe at the time, and they do not know what caused the break.

Magruder said that IVGID is currently on the scene fixing the sewer line, and Granite Construction will be working on a temporary fix to get the road open. Magruder estimated that the road will stay closed until Tuesday night or Wednesday morning.

Highway 28 is a very popular route during the summer months for people accessing beaches on Tahoe's east shore, as well as for those commuting to North Lake Tahoe. Magruder said that road averages 5,500 cars a day.

The break happened in an area away from the shore of Lake Tahoe, and Magruder said he doesn't believe any of the treated water spilled into the lake.