Tuesday morning, a large rock slide thundered into the roadway on Otterdalsvegen, between Grodås and Otterdal in Møre og Romsdal.
According to the police, a boulder loosened 360 meters up the mountainside, which really set the forces of nature in motion.
– Jørg Køhler and Anders Maurset praise themselves happily for no one being on the road when the big landslide thundered down. Photo: Bengt Flaten / Fjordingen
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Both the road and the guardrail were destroyed by the landslide, which had a mass of around 1000 cubic meters.
It was the newspaper Fjordingen who first mentioned the case.
According to the newspaper, 160 meters of the road is blocked by the landslide and ensures that the inhabitants of the village of Otterdal are blocked off from the outside world.
Huge boulder loosened
There are also several huge holes in the roadway, so both asphalt and mass must be replaced before the road can be opened to traffic again.
Jørg Køhler in Veidekke Industri, who is responsible for maintenance on the road, arrived at the site on Tuesday morning.
– The landslide started with a large boulder that came loose high up in the mountains. The stone block then triggered a larger landslide in the form of a fan that now covers about 160 meters of the roadway, says Køhler to Fjordingen.
Not the first time
Although it can be scary, this is starting to become a regular diet for the locals in the area.
– A major clean-up job is needed before the road is cleared and can be reopened. Photo: Bengt Flaten / Fjordingen
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Ten years ago, when the New Year’s hurricane Dagmar ravaged Norway, this stretch of road was also demolished.
The damage at the time led to the road being closed for 23 months.
Geologists were on site at the crash site on Tuesday morning, but it may take time before the road will be reopened.
– First, the geologist must do his job. Once the geologist approves, we can start clearing the road. Then we have to secure, and about 60 meters of the asphalt must be replaced, says Køhler.
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