The Washington Monument is one of the nation's capital landmarks and a must-see for many visitors. It's cherry blossom season, but another elevator failure forced the Washington Monument to temporarily close, forcing 40 visitors and two park rangers to walk down hundreds of stairs.

A national park service official said 19 people were inside the elevator and 23 on the observation deck when it stopped about 85 meters high for no apparent reason. No one was injured.

The Washington Monument is expected to reopen after the elevator is inspected for failure and necessary repairs. The monument's elevators have been shut down several times over the past year, including for three days in February after a control box was damaged.

The marble obelisk, which is about 169 meters high, was badly damaged in a 5.8 magnitude earthquake in 2011. After nearly three years and a $15 million renovation, the monument reopened to the public in May 2014.

Washington is hosting its annual cherry blossom festival, which runs through April 17. Washington's cherry blossoms, which bloom in early April, began blooming about 10 days earlier this year because of warmer temperatures, drawing visitors to national memorial park, the Jefferson memorial, the Washington Monument and tidal lake.