UPDATE: All lanes of Route 7 in Lawrence County reopen

UPDATE 3/15/18 @ 6:11 p.m.

All lanes of state Route 7 in Lawrence County, Ohio are back open.

According to the Ohio Department of Transportation, maintenance crews and contractors have sped up operations and have it reopened ahead of schedule.

The westbound lanes have been closed since the end of February when a massive rock slide happened.

The eastbound lanes were back open to drivers the day after it happened.

Rocks and debris have been removed from the hillside.

Crews have also worked to repair the damaged roadway.

The westbound lanes of state Route 7 in Lawrence County, Ohio are expected to be reopen on Friday.

According to the Ohio Department of Transportation, crews are working to reopen those lanes by the end of the week.

The westbound lanes have been closed since the end of February when a massive rockslide happened.

The eastbound lanes are back open to drivers.

However, the westbound lanes have been closed since the rockslide happened.

Rocks and debris have been removed from the hillside.

Crews have also worked to repair the damaged roadway.

Contractors are now replacing concrete and are striping the road and replacing the guardrail.

Crews are hoping to have both westbound lanes back open by Friday.

Both eastbound lanes of state Route 7 are back open, and the westbound lanes are on track to be reopened sometime in the next couple of weeks after last month's massive boulder slide, ODOT officials say.

Crews have completed scaling and excavation work on the face of the hillside and are doing surface repairs to the westbound lanes.

The hill slide happened Feb. 26 between Chesapeake and Burlington.

ODOT says it will release more information in the coming days.

Keep checking WSAZ Mobile and WSAZ.com for the latest information.

One eastbound lane of state Route 7 is reopen Tuesday morning after Monday's massive rock slide between Chesapeake and Burlington.

That is the only lane that will be reopened at this time.

An excavator and several crews, including those with the state highway department, are working to clear the four-lane roadway. Highway officials say it could take up to three weeks to completely clear the enormous boulders.

No one was hurt in Tuesday's slide.

Keep checking WSAZ Mobile and WSAZ.com for the latest information.

All lanes of state Route 7 are closed in Chesapeake, Ohio, between the 17th Street and the 6th Street bridges after a rock slide early Monday morning.

An excavator has been brought in to start clearing the road. State highway crews from Columbus also were at the scene and will be working a 24/7 cycle to get the roadway clear.

No cars were hit, and no one was hurt, but officials say the roadway is heavily damaged by the falling debris.

Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers say they initially had a call about small rocks in the road around 4 a.m. before the massive boulder slide around 7 a.m.

Crews say it could be as long as two weeks before the roadway is completely reopened to traffic.

An ODOT spokesperson says after crews clear the rocks from the road, they have to go up on the hillside and clear the remaining loose rocks and secure the hill. They will then have to repair the road and guardrail that were damaged.

Recent heavy rainfall is being blamed for the slide.

ODOT officials say it is common, especially in the Route 7 and 52 corridor to see slides after significant rains.

In April 2015 a massive boulder crashed onto U.S. 52 in Coal Grove near the Ashland bridges after heavy rain.

Keep checking WSAZ Mobile and WSAZ.com for the latest information.

All lanes of State Route 7 are closed in Chesapeake, Ohio, between the 17th Street and the 6th Street bridges.

An excavator has been brought in to start clearing the road. State highway crews from Columbus also were at the scene.

No cars were hit, and no one was hurt.

Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers say they initially had a call about small rocks in the road around 4 a.m. before the massive boulder slide around 7 a.m.

Crews say the roadway will be closed for an undetermined amount of time due to concerns of more boulders becoming dislodged and the need for heavy equipment to break the large boulders before they can be moved.

“It will be a lengthy undetermined amount of time to open the roadway, due to the large boulders needing to be removed and then the road will need to be re-built due to it being damaged by the boulders,” Lt. Mike Gore.

Crews say it could be days before the scene is completely cleared.

Ohio Department of Transportation, Fayette Township, Proctorville and Chesapeake Fire Departments are all on scene.

Keep checking WSAZ Mobile and WSAZ.com for the latest information.

A huge rockslide has closed State Route 7 in Chesapeake.

The huge boulders, smaller rocks and trees came tumbling down just before 7 a.m. Monday.

The Ohio Department of Transportation says S.R. 7 West (North) in Lawrence County has been closed in the four-lane section between the 0.0- and the 1.0-mile markers near Chesapeake due to the rock slide.

Both westbound (north) lanes are closed near C.R. 124 (Tallow Ridge Road), east of the U.S. 52 interchange and the 6th Street Bridge to West Virginia.

Currently, the route is open in one lane in the eastbound direction. Westbound motorists will be detoured via the 6th and 17th Street bridges in West Virginia.

WSAZ has a news crew on scene.

Keep clicking on WSAZ Mobile and WSAZ.com for the latest on this story.