There are some major traffic delays in western Colorado that travelers are having to deal with. These delays follow a rockslide that punched huge holes in a bridge and left huge boulders on Interstate 70. This rockslide has caused almost 17 miles of highway to have to be closed down.

The rockslide itself happened around midnight this past Sunday near Hanging Lake Tunnel in Glenwood Canyon. This is an area that is about 110 miles west of Denver. The good news, maybe due to the fact that the rockslide happened at night, was the fact that there were no injuries to report. There was also no damage done to vehicles.

All of the lanes were closed from Glenwood Springs east to the town of Dotsero. Almost 25,000 vehicles a day travel this section of highway. This rockslide has also blocked the main route between Denver airport and the Aspen Skiing Co.’s four Apsen area resorts.

So far, officials have not determined how long the highway would be closed for. Due to the rugged terrain of the area, the shortest detour route that could be given adds about 200 miles around the mountainous Flat Tops Wilderness Area.

The largest hole that was made in the roadway by the rocks measures 10 feet by 20 feet. About 20 boulders, ranging from 3 to 10 feet long, are scattered all over the highway. The largest rock weighed in at 66 tons. Crew members are currently drilling holes in the boulders to insert explosives and blast them down into smaller pieces to be hauled away.