Happy anniversary to the boulder tweet that broke the internet
We'll never forget you, large boulder.
In the pandemic’s early days, when the real meaning of “going viral” became clear, the San Miguel County Sheriff’s Department in Colorado managed to get everyone’s attention -- and that's a big deal, considering how busy we all were stocking up on toilet paper and baking bread.
The reason San Miguel County police went viral wasn’t for a high-speed chase or a daring rescue.
It was for the most mundane thing you could possibly imagine: A rock.
On January 27, 2020, the department tweeted a road alert that stopped the internet:
“Large boulder the size of a small boulder is completely blocking east-bound lane Highway 145 … at Silverpick Rd. Please use caution and watch for emergency vehicles in the area.”
The internet had some questions ...
Within hours, the post had picked up momentum, bouncing from Twitter to Facebook, to Reddit, and to every newsroom with Wi-Fi (we had a good laugh about it behind the scenes here at The Weather Network).
To this day, it sits at more than 77 million impressions and over 300,000 “likes” across several social media platforms.
The now-iconic post was written by public information officer Susan Lilly. Back in 2020, she told Denver7 news it was a typo, and that meant to say the boulder was the size of a small car — but hey, we all make mistakes.
And we’re thankful for this one: It provided just the right amount of distraction during some very uncertain times.
Header image: File photos. Made by Cheryl Santa Maria for The Weather Network with Canva Pro.