Yosemite National Park has recorded one of its first rockfalls this year. Park officials reported a rockslide occurrence around 1:30 pm local time (4:30 pm ET) Monday. A huge piece of granite broke off from the 2,308 m summit of El Capitan and left a blanket of dust lingering in the surrounding area for several minutes, as seen in the video of the event.

The park recorded 47 rockfalls in Yosemite Valley, and there's a possibility of multiple such occurrences every year in the region, according to the park. The recent incident caused a closure of all trails from Camp 4 to El Capitan Crossover, and the Northside Drive, including the Firefall viewing area. Southside Drive remained open both ways, SierraNewsOnline reported.

The Horsetail Fall viewing remains open to viewing. Those interested can do so by walking from Yosemite Valley Lodge along the road toward, but not all the way to, the El Capitan Picnic area. The road is open to pedestrians only for now.

For those looking to exit the valley, Southside Drive is set up as one, for two-way traffic from Sentinel Bridge, the park confirmed. For any updates on road closures, travelers can call 209/372-0200.

The park didn't have any update regarding the time needed to clear up the area of the rockslide. "The road will be closed for 24 hours from the time of the rockfall (possibly longer). A detour is in place for vehicles exiting Yosemite Valley," the park said.

Over 3.5 million people visit the park – spread across 3,000 km² -- annually. Many patrons drive 3.5 hours from San Francisco to only spend time in the 18 km² areas of Yosemite Valley. The U.S. Geological Survey's report from September 2014 said rockfalls in Yosemite National Park "pose a substantial hazard and risk to the approximately 4 million annual visitors to Yosemite National Park."

The USGS, in association with the National Park Service, began studying the hazards of rockfalls after 3 people died and at least 19 were injured in a 1980 incident. Over 1,000 rockfalls have occurred in the area in the past 150 years, according to the park. These occurrences escalate during harsh weather conditions including "intense rainfall, and/or subfreezing temperatures."

The report also noted that "the 2008 Glacier Point rock falls, which represent the most damaging historical rock-fall event with respect to infrastructure led the National Park Service to permanently close more than 200 buildings within the Curry Village area."

Visitors check out the view from the east end of the Wawona Tunnel into Yosemite Valley, showing three major landmarks, from the left, El Capitan, Half Dome and Bridalveil Fall, obscured by thick smoke in the area from the wildfire burning to the south in
Visitors check out the view from the east end of the Wawona Tunnel into Yosemite Valley, showing three major landmarks, from the left, El Capitan, Half Dome and Bridalveil Fall, obscured by thick smoke in the area from the wildfire burning to the south in the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias, at Yosemite National Park, California, U. Reuters / U.S. NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
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