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An excavator crashed on a steep slope this afternoon after the Stalheimskleiva road in western Norway gave way. The driver was heroically rescued by a firefighter who descended on a rope.
Stalheimskleiva is located in Nærøydalen between Voss and Gudvangen and is a very popular destination for tourists by car. The tourist road has been closed all summer due to the danger of landslides.
– Ulukka is to blame for the road giving way. We sent a man down a rope down the hill, who managed to save the driver, Aurland fire chief Reinhard Sørensen tells NRK.
Search for explosives
Several specially trained dogs, dog handlers and the bulldozer driver were in town when the road disappeared without warning.
– Part of the mandate to improve the highway includes investigating if explosives were left from the days of the war. Therefore, there were dogs with noses for those instead. Fortunately, none of them have been injured, Brynjulv Eide of the Norwegian Public Roads Administration tells NRK.
A full alarm was heard when the message arrived. The Sogn og Fjordane alarm center claims that both Aurland and Voss sent rescuers.
VERY STEEP: Here the excavator is going down the slope under the road in Stalheimskleiva.
Photo: Aurland Fire Department
Danger zone
The bulldozer driver appeared uninjured when picked up, but was sent to a doctor for a more thorough check.
In May, several tourists in tents came close to being hit by a rock slide when they camped along the road.
– I explained there was a danger of landslides, but tourists don’t bite, Roald Jordalen told NRK at the time.
The Stalheim area was used as a strategically important base for the Germans during World War II and there are many traces of their activity. Among other things, bunkers and shooting positions.
QUICK SLOPE: The driver of an excavator must have been physically unscathed from the accident.
