MOUNT TEIDE ACCESS ROAD RE-OPENED

SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Thursday March 4 2010

THE SOUTHERN access road into the Mount Teide national park was re-opened on Thursday following work to clear storm debris.

by JAMES TWEEDIE

Workers for the Tenerife Department of Roads laboured around the clock to clear fallen rocks brought down by February's feak storms and flooding.

The work involved stabilising and securing slopes damaged by the rain, wind, snow and ice along the TF-21 road between El Parador and Boca Tauce.

The stretch of road is inside the park, and experts from the various public agencies involved had to carry out an environmental impact assessment before work began.

The only stretch of the TF-21 now closed to traffic is the northern access road to the volcano via La Orotava, which will be blocked from 8 am to 3 pm hours daily between kilometres 19 and 22.

Road workers are still removing pine trees uprooted by last weekend’s storms, which pose a risk of falling onto the road.
The park was closed during the storms, preventing residents and tourists from visiting the freshly snow-covered mountain.

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