Boater Alert: Emergency Repairs to Close OR58 Barnard’s Bridge Crossing Middle Fork Willamette River, Sept. 9

The Oregon State Marine Board wants to alert boaters who operate on the Middle Fork Willamette River near RM 225, west of Oakridge between Hills Creek Reservoir and Lookout Point Reservoir for emergency repairs to Barnard’s Bridge.  The Oregon Department of Transportation plans to begin construction on Monday, September 9, which is expected to take two weeks to complete. The repairs to the Barnard’s Bridge will include extensive in-water work, requiring the Corps of Engineers to drop the river volume and divert the water upstream of the bridge to the right channel in order to repair the footings and fill the scour holes of the bridge.  The left channel will be blocked during the repair, so boaters must stay river-right and take the right channel before the island, upstream of the bridge.  Nighttime navigation lights will not be added to the water diversion work structure, so boaters are urged to avoid this area after daylight hours. Signs will be placed at Osprey Park, Green Waters boat ramp and the tip of the island. To view a map of the emergency bridge repair area, visit https://www.oregon.gov/osmb/info/Documents/News-Releases/BarnardBridgeRepair.pdf.