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Melting snow causes rockslide, closes road

Andrew Harley
Summit Daily/Brad Odekirk
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SUMMIT COUNTY – The Dillon Dam Road was closed at least through Tuesday morning due to a large rockslide that occurred between 9 and 10 p.m. Sunday near the Glory Hole.The Summit County Communications Center said it was a relatively large rockslide and Summit County Road and Bridge crews were working to clear the slide. Spring melting has caused rocks to slide on steep embankments all over Summit County.

“It was too dangerous to continue cleanup (Monday afternoon). The road will remain closed, and we will reconsider opening it tomorrow,” said Summit County Road and Bridge Director John Polhemus.A snowbank on the hill above the slide area moved the rocks as it melted, Polhemus said. “I was out there for 45 minutes, and rocks were constantly falling,” said Polhemus. “They are still falling.”

No one was hurt in the slide, and no cars were hit by falling rocks, although one car broke its front axle driving over a large rock.”I don’t think the black top took any damages,” said Polhemus of the road’s surface condition.However, a Jersey curb – a 12-feet wide by 3-feet tall retaining wall – was split in half by the rockslide, so that will have to be repaired.



The rocks range in size from a baseball to the size of a car’s hood, Polhemus said.Vail Daily, Vail, Colorado


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