The reopen­ing of the stretch of Inter­state 70 through Glen­wood Canyon closed by wild­fire could hap­pen with­in sev­er­al days, state trans­porta­tion offi­cials said Thursday.

The high­way has been shut down in both direc­tions from Glen­wood Springs to Gyp­sum since Aug. 10 because of the Griz­zly Creek fire. It’s the longest clo­sure of I‑70 through Glen­wood Canyon in the highway’s history.

Shoshana Lew, exec­u­tive direc­tor of the Col­orado Depart­ment of Tran­spi­ra­tion, said on Thurs­day that the depart­ment is “doing every­thing pos­si­ble to expe­dite” the reopen­ing of the highway.

Engi­neer­ing crews have been check­ing on dam­age to the high­way from fire, rock slides and debris. So far, heat from the fire does not appear to have done exten­sive dam­age to the roadway.

The high­way remains closed for safe­ty rea­sons, to pro­tect the trav­el­ing pub­lic and fire­fight­ers who con­tin­ue to work in the area.

High­way offi­cials stressed Thurs­day that the south­ern detour, on U.S. 285 and U.S. 50, and the north­ern detour, on Inter­state 80, are work­ing well and the routes are capa­ble of accom­mo­dat­ing the increased traf­fic levels.

High­way offi­cials stressed that dri­vers using the routes should remain patient and cau­tious in their trav­el, and that acci­dents, often caused by inat­ten­tive or impa­tient dri­vers, cause shut­downs and delays.