Overview
- A large rockfall struck a car on RD902 at Eygliers on Friday, August 21, sending the vehicle down into the Guil river and leaving its two occupants seriously injured.
- Rescue teams mobilized 27 firefighters including mountain and water rescue units, used nine vehicles and helicopters to extricate the victims, and airlifted them to hospitals in Briançon and Grenoble.
- Officials closed the RD902 after discovering a fissure above the road and warned further rockfalls are possible, setting a diversion via the Col de l'Izoard while technical experts evaluate the site.
- The departmental council said protective equipment will be installed in the coming days, but engineers must first complete geological assessments to set conditions and a timetable for reopening.
- Local officials linked the collapse to extreme recent weather—a very dry summer followed by heavy storms—and initial media reports gave differing estimates of the detached block's size, leaving precise measurements to specialists.