Car-sized boulder falls onto a Colorado highway
The Colorado Department of Transportation says rockfalls are a significant hazard that sporadically affect highways through the state. Rockfalls are a common hazard on mountainous roadways during the spring and early summer.
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SAN MIGUEL COUNTY, Colo. - A boulder roughly the size of a small car crashed onto a Colorado highway Saturday, partially blocking traffic and creating an impromptu spectacle.
The San Miguel County Sheriff’s Office said the rockfall occurred on Colorado Highway 145 at mile marker 75, not far from the Telluride Regional Airport in the southwestern portion of the state.
Deputies responded to the scene and began directing traffic around the obstruction until the Colorado Department of Transportation could devise a plan to remove the giant rock.
"Not kidding — there’s a large boulder the size of a small CAR in the center of Highway 145 mm 75.5," the sheriff’s office said in a social media post. "Deputies on scene directing alternating lanes of traffic. CDOT en route."
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No injuries were reported, but the road obstruction caused minor traffic backups as vehicles slowly maneuvered around the debris.
Rockfalls are a common hazard on mountainous roadways in the Centennial State, especially in spring and early summer when snowmelt and significant temperature fluctuations can loosen rocks.
Transportation officials routinely perform rock-clearing operations along major roadways to limit potential incidents.
Just last month, CDOT performed maintenance on a nearby stretch of the same highway, targeting debris and rocks that could make travel hazardous.
The boulder that landed near mile marker 75 is far smaller than a massive rockslide that garnered national headlines in 2019 along Highway 145.
Colorado Highway 145 boulder in 2019. (City of Ouray / FOX Weather)
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During that incident, two boulders - one weighing 2.3 million pounds and another weighing around 8.5 million pounds - tumbled down more than a 1,000-foot slope.
One of the boulders destroyed a section of the roadway and had to be blasted apart by CDOT crews, while the other came to rest on the side of the highway.
Transportation officials later decided to leave the gigantic boulder in place, where it has become a landmark for local travelers.
CDOT has not released an estimated timeline for when the latest boulder will be removed or if repairs will have to be conducted to the highway.