As of: March 10, 2024, 1:12 p.m
By: Johannes Welte
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Another rockslide has hit a road in Trentino.
© Autonomous Province of Trento
Thaw and heavy rain have caused another rockslide in northern Italy.
In broad daylight, a huge chunk fell onto a road in the Fiemme Alps.
Castello Tesino – The Fiemme Valley Alps at the junction of South Tyrol and Trentino in northern Italy are an insider tip for holidaymakers who want to escape the hustle and bustle in the Dolomites.
Here, too, there are rugged rocks and remote villages where you can still enjoy the original atmosphere, but not as many tourists as in Val Gardena.
Only a happy coincidence prevents a tragedy
An increasingly popular address for holidaymakers is the town of Castello Tesino with its many churches, which is nestled on a slope on the Tesino plateau - against the backdrop of the 2,847 meter high Cima d'Asta.
A provincial road leads from Castello Tesino past the Cascata del Salton waterfall to the hamlet of Roa.
This very road almost became the scene of a tragedy on Saturday (March 9): a rock slide with a volume of at least 10 cubic meters crashed onto the provincial road early in the morning.
By a lucky coincidence, no car was passing by when the rocks fell.
They had broken free from a slope dozens of meters high above.
In broad daylight, the huge rocks fall onto the road
The road was then closed around 2 p.m.
Construction machinery began to clear the bridges aside.
However, the street remained closed for the time being.
According to the Province of Trento, an on-site inspection by the official geologist by helicopter is planned.
It is still unclear when the road can be reopened.
There had been heavy rains in Trentino in the past few days.
Rock falls in the northern Italian Alps have been causing unrest for months.
Almost at the same time, rocks fell onto the western shore of Lake Garda.
On neighboring Lake Ledro, a road was recently completely blocked by a broken rock.
Two weeks ago, roads, rails and a cycle path in Valsugana were hit by falling rocks.
Many experts blame the changing climate for the strikingly high number of rock falls.
Heavy rain washes the rocks free, permafrost in the summit regions thaws, and further down the alternation between frost and thaw blows away stones and rocks.