RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) — The National Park Service is reopening to tourists a highway pull-out area that can be used to view Mount Rushmore, amid complaints that the agency is intentionally blocking viewing areas.

The national memorial has been closed because of the federal government shutdown. The Rapid City Journal reports hundreds of tourists have complained that Park Service rangers have placed cones along a highway to stop drivers from pulling over to take photos of the monument.

Park Service regional deputy director Patricia Trap says the agency never intended to ruin anyone's view of Mount Rushmore. She says some pull-out areas were blocked with cones because there weren't enough rangers to monitor them.

She says the Park Service is opening a popular pull-out area that officials believe sparked most of the complaints.

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