Blast triggers slip at South Island tourist spot

The Blue Pools near Haast Pass. Photo / Wanaka Tourism

Contractors doing blasting work have inadvertently triggered a rockfall at one of the country's top scenic wilderness spots.

The slip happened yesterday during construction of a new swingbridge and Department of Conservation (DOC) walkway at the Blue Pools, near Makarora, north of Wanaka, the Otago Daily Times reported.

About 200 cubic metres of rock and several beech trees came down from a steep face with the slip, said DOC Wanaka area manager Paul Hellebrekers.

The slip, opposite the viewing platform, would not diminish the Blue Pools attraction, he said.

The slip had been "sitting there" waiting to happen as the a rea was unstable, with the massive landslip in the north branch of the Young River not very far away.

The trees had been removed from the pools and the slip area would look "a little raw" until it regenerated, he said.

The Blue Pools, ranked number 21 on the AA's New Zealand 101 must-do list, are just off the Haast highway.

The track leading to the popular natural attraction has been closed for the past two weeks while contractors upgrade facilities and access into Mount Aspiring National Park.

- NZPA