U.S. 321 will not be open to traffic for the weekend.

North Carolina Department of Transportation officials closed the highway between Kirby Mountain Road and Waterfalls Road in northern Caldwell County Monday because loose rock formations associated with a slide that took place last week, saying the road may be open by the weekend.

But officials with widening project contractor W.C. English Inc. informed NCDOT engineers it may take several more days before the road is opened to traffic. Engineers hope to open the road by Monday, Dec. 15, though it is possible that it may take several more days beyond that to shore up the situation.

"It's possible this work may go into next week," said English General Superintendent Henry McDaniel. "This is a time-consuming process. We won't know how much longer it may take until after we get to perform a shot."

Construction crews have been working to remove boulders that were loosened during blasting that took place Thursday, Dec. 3, closing the road overnight into Friday, Dec. 4. The highway was open to traffic Friday morning and remained open through the weekend,

However, an inspection Monday by NCDOT engineers and representatives from English showed the road section needed to be shut down for an extended period of time to allow removal of the loose fragments that possibly could lead to another slide and put motorists through that area in peril.

"It was not until that slide last week that we saw some of the real dangers," McDaniel said. "It revealed some things that had not been looked at. We have to check the stability of those rock formations. When we met Monday, we determined the road had to be shut down right then. It's too dangerous to leave open."

NCDOT Resident Engineer Frank Gioscio said earlier this week that huge boulders have been loosened some 75 feet along the face of one of the slopes adjacent to the highway. He noted that the 45-degree angle of the rock's potential descent heightens the risk to motorists.

Recent heavy rains, along with colder temperatures, have created the hazardous situation. Gioscio said water gets lodged into the rocks, freezes, then thaws as the day warms up. The cycle loosens the rock formations and creates ideal situations for boulders to break free.

The heavy rain that fell Tuesday also slowed progress for English crews as they attempted to remove the rocks and get the site ready for blasting operations planned for today. McDaniel said water filled the drill holes that had been put in place for the shot that is scheduled, throwing crews behind in their efforts to remedy the matter.

"Things like that slow you down," he said. "We just have to make sure that this area is safe for the public."

Gioscio explained that crews have been rappeling along the cliff face and boring holes into the boulders to insert explosives for the blasting operation.

The slide happened in an area of the widening project for U.S. 321 from two to four lanes near its southern work site. Construction has been going on since February 2005 for the project, which has faced numerous setbacks along the way.

Motorists are reminded to follow the posted detour route instead of taking other routes for safety reasons. Some of the secondary roads are unpaved, one lane and are not meant for trucks, large vehicles or heavy traffic.

Traffic heading north from Lenoir toward Blowing Rock should follow N.C. 18 into Wilkes County until it intersects with U.S. 421 North, then take U.S. 421 North to Boone and turn left onto the N.C. 105 Extension, followed by a left turn onto U.S. 321 South to Blowing Rock.

To head south on U.S. 321 from Blowing Rock, follow the route back to Lenoir from Boone.