The mudslide along 50 feet of the Butler-Freeport Community Trail, shown above, which occurred the weekend of May 7, has been cleaned up. Trail users are urged to use caution at the area of the slide, as some mud remains on the trail. Submitted photo

The mudslide that covered about 50 feet of the Butler-Freeport Community Trail a few weeks ago has been cleaned up and the trail reopened, but the president of the trail association said the situation could happen again.

Chris Ziegler, trail president, said the steep hillside along the trail between the Monroe and Laneville trail heads let loose on May 7 and 8 after repeated soaking rainfall events over the course of a few days.

The slide spewed mud, saplings and stone onto the trail, which had to be closed for a few days while the public works crew from South Buffalo Township, Armstrong County, used their heavy equipment to clear the trail, Ziegler said.

“With the amount of rain we had, the ground was already wet and it just failed,” Ziegler said of the section of hillside.

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