GOLDEN, Colo. — U.S. 6 in Clear Creek Canyon was shut down Tuesday afternoon after a rockfall led to the injury of one motorist, Golden Fire Rescue said.
The Colorado Department of Transportation said a smaller rock damaged one car and injured a female passenger. “Two larger rocks did not hit the vehicle but did damage the roadway, creating an approximate 4-foot by 4-foot ‘dent’ in the road surface,” CDOT said. Crews worked to repair the road before reopening it.
There were two people in the car. A woman went to the hospital with minor injuries. She was described as being in “good condition” when she left the scene.
The rocks fell one mile west of Tunnel 1 and six miles west of Golden about noon.
“One giant boulder that was about 8ft by 8ft by 6ft came down and landed just in front of one of the cars. The other cars were hit with smaller rocks,” Golden Fire-Rescue spokeswoman Karlyn Tilley said. “One car was behind it and one car was in front of it and they just had the smaller rocks. They both stopped but there were no injuries or damage to those cars.”
“My understanding is that CDOT is saying that it’s not a rock slide, that there were just some rocks that fell on the road, so there is a difference there,” Tilley said.
“The people who were in the car that was closest to that boulder can count there blessings. They were very lucky that they didn’t get hit by that boulder. I’m sure they’re pretty shaken up but luckily they are going to be OK.”
Clear Creek Canyon is a popular road for travelers heading to the gambling town of Black Hawk. The highway reopened around 3 p.m. after clean up and road repairs were complete.
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