A section of the Cliff Walk collapsed into the water below around 2 pm on Thursday.
Newport Police Department immediately closed off the section between Webster St. and Narragansett Ave.
On Instagram on Thursday, the City of Newport shared, “Please be advised that Newport’s Cliff Walk has experienced a significant landslide and partial collapse in the vicinity between 40 Steps and Webster Avenue. As a result, the Cliff Walk will be closed from Narragansett Avenue to Webster Avenue for the foreseeable future”.
The City of Newport reported that no injuries have been reported and that their public safety and Public Services crews are on the scene assessing the damage.
On Friday afternoon, the City of Newport provided the following update on social media;
As you’ve likely heard, a roughly 20-foot section of Newport’s Cliff Walk just south of 40 Steps suffered a catostrophic failure early Thursday afternoon.
Please be advised that as a result, the portion of the Cliff Walk between Narragansett Avenue and Webster Street will be closed for the foreseeable future.
Our Public Services crews are currently assessing the damage, however we expect that further degradation is still possible over the coming days.
Visitors to the Cliff Walk are asked to follow detour signs and to not attempt to enter the restricted area.
The City is currently working with our State and local partners to investigate the cause of this unprecedented collapse, and more importantly, to ensure that repairs are made as thoughtfully, efficiently, and resiliently as possible.
Please note that the remainder of the Cliff Walk remains open for recreation and we’re looking forward to building back this section of pathway even better than before.
This story was originally published on March 3. We’ll update this story as we learn more.
Further Reporting On This
ABC 6 – Residents shocked after chunk of Newport’s cliff walk collapses
Boston Globe – ‘We’re calling this a catastrophic event’: Collapsed section of Newport Cliff Walk was not an ‘area of concern,’ city says