Robin Carlisle, the Minister for Transport and Public Works in the Western Cape has announced the closure of Chapman’s Peak Drive this morning at around 06h30 due to a rock fall in the early hours of the morning.
‘A single rock landed on the road close to the Half Tunnel, on the Noordhoek side of the tunnel.
‘This constituted a level four fall, seen as a high risk rock fall that requires an immediate road closure, followed by a detailed assessment to determine the origin point of the rock.
‘Heavy rainfalls on the pass have thus far prevented our abseiling team from making an ascent. They will proceed as soon as the rain has subsided.
‘Last week we had multiple rock falls in the vicinity of the Half Tunnel, but all the rocks landed in the drop zone, not reason enough for a road closure. Our assessment at the time found that there was no reason to close the road.
‘We are hoping that once the rain has subsided it will take a maximum of 24 hours to make an assessment to determine whether the pass is safe.’
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