ARCHES NATIONAL PARK, Utah, Jan. 1, 2019 (Gephardt Daily) — Arches National Park announced Monday on Twitter that access to the park is unavailable because of snow and ice, which cannot be cleared because of a lack of funding during the government shutdown.
The tweet said the road may remain closed until the snow and ice melts or until funding is restored.
An earlier tweet from the park staff said:
“NOTICE: The park is receiving heavy snowfall and it has become necessary to close the park road at the visitor center due to unsafe conditions. Because of the lapse of funding the National Park Service is unable to provide services, including plowing of roads.”
Canyonlands National Park also is closed because of hazardous road conditions due to the snow and ice that cannot be plowed during the shutdown.
Canyonlands officials tweeted on Monday:
“Due to heavy snowfall on 12/31/2018, the park road is closed at the visitor center. It is unknown when the road will open. Access to the park will not occur until conditions improve or the National Park Service receives funding to maintain the roads.”
Park officials refer the public to the National Park Service website, which gives you the following:
The NPS message above refers readers to the Department of the Interior website “for more information,” which provides details about “Contingency Plans for Operations in the Absence of Appropriations.”
