Notorious stretch of highway in B.C. Interior reopens after rock slide

CHASE, – Blasting work meant to improve a notorious stretch of the Trans-Canada Highway caused a rock slide and blocked traffic in British Columbia’s Interior for several hours.

The Ministry of Transportation says contractors were blasting at Hoffman’s Bluff, near the community of Chase, on Friday afternoon, when a significant amount of debris ended up on Highway 1.

Upgrades were announced to the same stretch of highway earlier this year, and the bluff was the scene of a fatal head-on crash between a bus and car in August.

The road was closed during the blast and the ministry says public safety was not at risk.

It says the contractor was removing the rock and cleaning up the highway, which reopened in the early evening.