A major Brecon Beacons tourist attraction has been sealed off over concerns about safety, it has emerged.
Scwd yr Eira waterfall attracts 160,000 visitors a year, but rocks above it have been found to be unstable.
The attraction, in the upper Neath Valley, was fenced off after health and safety officials were called in.
The Forestry Commission, which owns the land around the falls, is seeking talks with Brecon Beacons National Park and the Countryside Council for Wales.
Scwd yr Eira is in an area of the beacons known as waterfall country, and is one of the few falls where people can walk behind the water as it cascades down into a pool.
Health and safety officers were brought in a few days ago when rocks above the falls were found to be loose.
Restoration work
Clive Davies, information officer with Forestry Commission Wales, said: "We have applied to Brecon Beacons National Park for an emergency closure order for the footpath behind the waterfall.
"Uppermost in our minds is public safety and because of the risk that has been pointed out to us, we have no option but to seek this closure."
He added that as the attraction was so popular, urgent action was all the more necessary.
But there are also concerns that restoration work could be complex because the area is a site of special scientific interest, and a special area of conservation.
Forestry Commission Wales is seeking urgent talks with the Countryside Council for Wales and Brecon Beacons National Park over the issue.
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