Falling rock kills woman on US 40, detour route after I-70 rockslide

Yesterday we reported on the rock slide that has turned I-70 into a disaster zone, closed the Glenwood Canyon stretch of the highway indefinitely, and forced motorists onto alternate routes including a 200-mile detour loop on US 40. The bad news doesn't end there: This morning a woman was killed...

By Colin Bane

March 10, 2010

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Yesterday we reported on the rock slide that has turned I-70 into a disaster zone, closed the Glenwood Canyon stretch of the highway indefinitely, and forced motorists onto alternate routes including a 200-mile detour loop on US 40.

The bad news doesn't end there: This morning a woman was killed by a falling rock on US 40, according to The Steamboat Pilot / Steamboat Today:

A 55-year-old Craig woman was killed early this morning on U.S. Highway 40 between Hayden and Steamboat Springs when a boulder fell onto the roof of the vehicle she was riding in.

The incident [occurred] at about 7:17 a.m., Colorado State Patrol Cpl. Eric Wynn said. Routt County Coroner Rob Ryg described it a "freak accident." The woman, Karen Lynn Evanoff, was killed instantly, Ryg said.

Evanoff was a passenger in a 2004 Buick headed east on U.S. 40 toward Steamboat, where she worked. The basketball-sized rock came tumbling down Wolf Mountain, where the cliff band hugs the north side of U.S. 40 just past Mount Harris, Ryg said.

Drive carefully out there, folks, and consider making alternate travel plans: We're seeing roundtrip flights from DIA to the Aspen/Pitkin County Airport in the $139-275 range this week, so you might be able to avoid that drive (and detour) altogether if you have ski plans. Book now while you still can: Aspen's 10th Annual Spring Jam kicks off March 19 and a lot of people are going to be scrambling for ways to get there.

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