By Jason Auslander, The Aspen Times
Heavy rain from Tuesday’s late afternoon thunderstorms caused several rockslides around Shale Bluffs that closed upvalley traffic lanes on Colorado 82 for more than three hours, an official said.
Alex Burchetta, a commander with the Pitkin County Sheriff’s Office, said he was driving in the downvalley lanes through Shale Bluffs about 6:05 p.m.. when he noticed significant amounts of water coming down the bluffs and onto the highway.
He said he turned around at Brush Creek Road and returned to Shale Bluffs to make sure it was safe, arriving just in time to witness six rockslides, large and small, come down on to the highway. The largest was about 75 feet long, 4 to 5 feet deep in sections and ran across both upvalley traffic lanes, he said.
“There was a tremendous amount of rock and water coming off that hillside,” Burchetta said. “The water was probably 6 inches deep.”
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