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SPRINGDALE, Washington County — A rockfall near Big Bend in Zion National Park has been cleared, and the popular Zion Canyon Scenic Drive is back open. The road was closed around 3:30 P.M. MST, on Monday, after rocks fell onto the road between the Great White Throne pull out and the Big Bend shuttle stop. According to the park's public information officer Amanda J. D. Rowland, that section of the scenic drive remained closed for 24 hours so that officials could monitor for another rockfall. After the 24-hour waiting period, park officials began to clear the road. "Approximately nine cubic meters or one dump truck load of material was removed from the road," Rowland said in a statement.
Where the Zion rockfall originated
Rowland said the rockfall originated about 157 feet above the road on "a nearly vertical cliff (where) a 7-meter by 10-meter block of Navajo Sandstone failed." She said high temperatures and "the rooting of vegetation" lead to the rockfall. “Thankfully, there were no injuries or property damage,” said Jeff Bradybaugh, Zion National Park Superintendent, in a statement. “Rockfall can happen anywhere at any time in this highly erosive landscape.”
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