The weather conditions this week in the Pittsburgh area are ripe for road problems, including landslides which can cause major traffic headaches.

Yesterday morning, traffic was slowed to a stop when a landslide prompted part of Interstate 79 in Washington County to be closed.

With more landslides being possible, PennDOT could use your help. 

The more eyes watching out for problems, the better the chance to head off a disaster.

The hills that define western Pennsylvania can also freeze people in their tracks when they decide to slide.

PennDOT's District 11 Assistant Executive for Maintenance Lori Musto says that the region has a long history of slides, so the break from plowing and salting quickly ends when the freeze thaw loosens a hillside.

"We have our slide list of known locations, but then there's always those spots that kind of pop up as a surprise," Musto said.

While PennDOT can't foresee the pop up landslides, they do say there are high risk areas that they watch.

"You know, the south Allegheny areas, the Lovedale areas," Musto said. "Down south, that's an area that we're constantly looking for. Bunola River Road is an area that we see a lot of slides."

When it comes to cleaning up a landslide, it's not just scoop and dump. Crews have to be cautious.

"Make sure if it looks unstable above you or if it looks like the bottom of the slope slid out, you have to be careful because when you remove that material from the bottom of the slope, the rest of it could come down quickly," Musto said.

Musto says that as you are driving, you don't have to a geotechnical engineer to see a new crack on the slop next to the road or to notice a tree that has moved.

"If they start seeing material sloughing off, they may want to flag us and let us know," Musto said.

Anything that has fallen to the shoulder of the road could be a preview of much bigger things to come, so PennDOT asks that if you notice things, to give them a call at 1-800-FIX-ROAD.