A month-long evacuation prompted by a slow-moving landslide on Rattlesnake Ridge south of Yakima has been lifted.
KOMO-TV reports dozens of families received notice on Thursday that they could head home.
Residents had been evacuated in early January when concerns grew about the landslide. At that time, geologists felt a sudden failure of the land might send rocks tumbling onto Interstate 82 or the small group of houses below the ridge.
But this week, a new third-party report indicates the landslide may slowly "creep" along for years - the way it currently is. It's moving about 3 inches per day.
The Department of Natural Resources says it will continue to use data-gathering equipment to monitor the landslide.
(story: Nichole Mischke, KHQ Right Now Reporter, KHQ.com: photo: Civil Patrol via Yakima Valley Office of Emergency Management)