Travel Alert: Landslide closes Route 27, a major highway to Costa Rica’s Pacific coast

Update, 9:35 a.m. on Friday: The Caldera Highway has been reopened to traffic after workers removed debris on Thursday. Read the update here.

Original story continues here:

Transit on Route 27, the main highway connecting San José with the Pacific province of Puntarenas, has been completely shut down by landslides that blocked both lanes of the road.

Heavy rains on Wednesday afternoon are to blame for the massive amount of earth that dropped on kilometer 45 of the Caldera Highway at about 3 p.m. There have been no reports of injuries.

Traffic Police closed access to the highway at the toll station at Atenas and at the intersection to Orotina.

The most severe traffic congestion is now affecting travelers in the San José-Caldera lane, Traffic Police reported at 5 p.m.

Globalvía, the company that administers the route, recommends drivers use alternate routes through Monte del Aguacate, on Route 3.

Ruta 27 Informa cierre temporal km 45 PTE . Concepción tomar ruta alterna Orotina-Atenas por Monte el Aguacate ruta 3 pic.twitter.com/6DV87nG2cc

— Globalvia Ruta 27 (@autopdelsol) June 3, 2015