Hualien County authorities yesterday reopened a section of the Central Cross-Island Highway, known as Provincial Highway No. 8, between Taroko National Park and Tiansiang (天祥) following the controlled demolition to partially drain a barrier lake.
Vehicle traffic can now access the section, closed since Oct. 17 after a landslide formed the barrier lake near the west entrance of the Jin Heng Tunnel (靳珩隧道) in Taroko National Park, during designated hours, the Highway Bureau’s Eastern Region Branch Office said.
The section from 175km to 176km, including the Jin Heng Tunnel and Ludan Bridge (魯丹橋), is no longer flooded, and repair crews inspected facilities and cleared mud from the road, the office said in a statement.
Photo courtesy of the Highway Bureau
Before the closure, multiple sections of the highway in Hualien County had already been subject to time-restricted traffic controls amid repair work on damaged slopes, road surfaces and roadbed gaps.
Local authorities closed the stretch on Oct. 17 as a precaution after the barrier lake was determined to be at risk of overflow, which occurred in the days that followed.
A controlled demolition to release water from the dam began on Saturday, leading to its collapse at about 11:30am yesterday, the Forestry and Natural Conservation Agency’s Hualien office said.
When the dam collapsed, the water level of the lake dropped about 18m within 40 minutes, office deputy head Chiu Yi-chien (朱懿千) said.
The situation posed no immediate risks, but the downstream portion of the Liwu River (立霧溪) to the river mouth remains dangerous, and people should stay clear of the riverbed, the office said.
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