Road closures at the water gap

BUSHKILL - National Park Service Superintendent John Donahue has announced the nighttime closure of a section of N.J. state Route 615 in Flatbrookville due to the potential hazard to drivers from rocks tumbling down a nearby hillside. The closure will be in place until emergency stabilization of the area can be completed. Late last week, park maintenance workers removing a large rock from the roadway about a third of a mile north of the Flatbrook Bridge determined that erosion had caused the hillside to become very unstable and that a number of large rocks were poised to tumble to the road below. Although drivers are able to see and avoid rocks during daylight hours, the risk of an accident is higher during hours of darkness. The closure has accordingly been put into place until a solution to the problem can be determined. Drivers who use Route 615 for travel through the park’s New Jersey District should be aware that this closure effectively bars any north-south passage during nighttime hours due to an around-the-clock closure that has been in place and continues on a segment of Old Mine Road, the only alternative route. That section of road has been closed due to storm damage and will not be opened until it is repaired. A warning sign for southbound drivers is in place at the road fork just south of the Walpack Inn. A similar sign for northbound drivers has been placed at the Flatbrook Bridge. Although southbound drivers can continue past the warning sign, they will come upon a nighttime barricade near the danger area and will have to turn back. Drivers who use the road during nighttime hours for through travel must therefore employ alternative routes until further notice.