Precarious boulder is looming over Washington mountain highway, forcing road closures

A massive boulder is currently complicating travel through the Washington mountains, officials say.

The boulder is about 12 feet by 8 feet by 6 feet, the Washington State Department of Transportation said on Twitter. It currently “presents a safety issue,” as it rests above U.S. Highway 12 over White Pass and could fall onto it, the agency said in a blog post.

The boulder is at risk of being dislodged by additional snow and rain, as well as a mix of freezing and thawing temperatures. Officials plan to bring in a crew who specializes in rock removal to remove it, the agency said in a Tweet.

The boulder was exposed by a rock slide on Jan. 10, and engineers determined that it made the mountain pass too unstable to open, according to another Tweet.

Officials said that as of Jan. 12, there was no estimated time for the road to be reopened.

White Pass is about 100 miles southeast of Tacoma.

This story was originally published January 12, 2022 at 12:51 PM with the headline "Precarious boulder is looming over Washington mountain highway, forcing road closures."