ST. GEORGE — A large rock parked itself right on top of a road Sunday afternoon after rolling down a hillside outside of Bryce Canyon.
When Garfield County Sheriff Danny Perkins and a deputy responded to the scene, the sheriff posted over Twitter Sunday with a photo of a tour bus driving around the boulder on state Route 12.
“WE MAY NEED SOME HELP,” the sheriff said in the Tweet.
Myself and one of the Garfield County deputies responded to SR 12 in red Canyon to remove a rock that fell on the road.. WE MAY NEED SOME HELP ? pic.twitter.com/ZVY17AYNxZ
— Danny Perkins (@sheriffdperkins) February 3, 2019
The boulder is believed to have come loose due to rains softening up the soil the night before, said Denise Dastrup, Garfield County Sheriff’s Office public information officer.
No one was hurt when the boulder came rolling down and perched itself the road, she said.
“We had to stop traffic for about an hour until we could get it moved,” Dastrup said, explaining that the boulder was moved off the road by a piece of heavy equipment, though not very far.
“It’s still there on the roadside,” she said.
The roadway was opened soon after, and Dastrup took to social media to thank those involved.
“The road is now open and the Garfield County Sheriff would like to express his thanks to Utah Department of Transportation, Utah Highway Patrol and the Garfield County Sheriff’s Office for their help.”
Zion National Park has dealt with similar incidents in recent years.
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Garfield County Sheriff Danny Perkins stands in front of the boulder that rolled onto SR-12 outside of Bryce Canyon. Though it blocked traffic, no one was harmed when the large rock rolled onto the road, Garfield County, Utah, Feb. 3, 2019 | Photo courtesy of the Denise Dastrup, St. George News
A bulldozer begins pushing a boulder that tumbled onto SR-12 off the roadway. Authorities believe the boulder came loose after a night of rainfall soften the soil holding in place on a nearby hillside, Garfield County, Utah, Feb. 3, 2019 | Photo courtesy of the Denise Dastrup, St. George News
A boulder rolled onto SR-12 after a night of rainfall is believed to have played a part in its being dislodged from a nearby hillside. It was pushed of the road by heavy equipment soon after, Garfield County, Utah, Feb. 3, 2019 | Photo courtesy of the Denise Dastrup, St. George News
A tour bus passed a boulder that tumbled onto SR-12 outside of Bryce Canyon Feb. 3, 2019. The boulder temporarily blocked the roadway before being pushed off the road by heavy equipment, Garfield County, Utah, Feb. 3, 2019 | Photo courtesy of the Garfield County Sheriff’s Office, St. George News
A bulldozer begins pushing a boulder that tumbled onto SR-12 off the roadway. Authorities believe the boulder came loose after a night of rainfall soften the soil holding in place on a nearby hillside, Garfield County, Utah, Feb. 3, 2019 | Photo courtesy of the Denise Dastrup, St. George News
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