Your PUD News Release

Columbia boaters beware: No safety barrier above Rock Island Dam

Chelan County PUD
News Release
5/27/2008

Boaters and recreationists using the stretch of the Columbia River just upstream from Rock Island Dam are urged to use extreme caution because part of the safety barrier above the dam has broken and is no longer in place.
 
A large, snagged tree and high water flows created enough pressure to snap the three-quarter-inch steel cable on Saturday morning as river flows were estimated to be about 280,000 cubic feet per second (cfs). The cable runs across a series of floats and marks a restricted area boaters must avoid.
 
High flows make repair or replacement of the safety barrier difficult, and PUD crews say it could take as long as 30 days to get a replacement barrier anchored in place. An estimated 800 feet of the barrier is out of service, covering about three-fourths of the river primarily on the Chelan County side. Another part of the barrier remains anchored and in place on a portion of the river near the Douglas County shoreline.
 
The Columbia can go above 400,000 cfs during extremely high flows, and levels for the next several weeks during spring runoff are expected to remain high.
 
Boaters are urged to take precautions that would protect them in the event of an accident or a mechanical failure. Law enforcement agencies have been alerted to the situation, but fast river flows mean there is not much time for rescue before a boat would drift from the barrier location down to the dam. Power is being generated at the dam, and water is being spilled for flood control and fish migration.
 
Additional warning signs are being posted at boat launches along the Rock Island reservoir until repairs can be made.
 
For further information, contact:
 
Steve Lachowicz
Director, Communications Division
509 661-4639
steve.lachowicz@chelanpud.org
 
Darrell Gouldin
Director, Electrical Operations Division of Energy Resources
509 669-3724
darrell.gouldin@chelanpud.org