The A592 has been forced to close after a landslip caused by heavy rain undermined the carriageway, making it unsafe for road users and leaving a 'very big job' for repair teams.
Reports suggest the road could be closed for months due to the scale of the damage. Peter Thornton, cabinet member for highways at Westmorland and Furness Council, said: 'The whole of the underside of the carriageway has disappeared, so the road is actually just hanging there with nothing supporting it at all.'
He urged drivers not to go to the road to look at the damage: 'It's quite difficult to turn round when you get up towards the bridge - the last thing we want is a whole stream of people going to look at it and clogging the roads.'
An emergency closure has been made and a signed diversion route is in place via the A6, known locally as ‘The Struggle' due to the narrow, steep and difficult nature of the road.
Mr Thornton said that the council had an ‘enhanced plan for gritting' the route while the diversion is in place.
A spokesperson for the council said: 'Safety of road users is our main priority and this emergency closure has been absolutely necessary to protect the public. This has been a significant landslip that has undermined the road with a lot of material washed down the steep hillside.
'We recognise that the closure will cause some inconvenience, but for the safety of themselves and others, road users are requested to observe and respect the closures and please do not try to get through the barriers on the closed section.
'This is a difficult, restricted site and the technical assessments and surveys are continuing. We will provide further updates when we know more about next steps.'
