Big Sur Slide Buries Highway 1, Transforming California Shoreline
BIG SUR (KPIX 5) -- The massive weekend rock slide that buried a stretch of Highway 1 in the Mud Creek area south of Big Sur has reshaped the shoreline.
And it's another setback for Big Sur which has struggled ever since this landslide and two others to the north made it virtually impossible for visitors to reach businesses there.
"It was not safe to be out here. It was active. And you can't have equipment up there when the slide is moving," said Caltrans spokesperson Susana Cruz.
So late last week, Caltrans which had been working to reopen the road, pulled their equipment and crews.
And just days later the slide sent more than 5 million tons of earth cascading into the sea.
"Saturday night, it just finally gave way where millions of tons slipped into the shore," explained Cruz.
Caltrans estimates it's five football fields wide and juts 250 feet into the Pacific.
"We're living with landslides. We don't control them. You just respect them and deal with them as best we can," said Cruz.
To the frustration of many business owners in Big Sur, Caltrans says there's no fixed time table for work to resume .
They're waiting until the slide stabilizes and it's safe for workers to come back.