Big detour on Malheur NF 16 Road due to Fopian Bridge repairs
By Logan Bagett on Thursday, June 20th, 2024 in Eastern/Southeast Oregon News Featured Stories More Top Stories
PRAIRIE CITY / UNITY – Folks traveling on The Malheur National Forest’s 16 road near Fopian Creek will have a sizeable detour due to a closure for bridge repairs. On a recent episode of KJDY’s Coffee Time, Forest Silviculturist Zane Murray said while inconvenient, the closure should only be in place for a month or two:
“There’s a Fopian Bridge [closure]. That detour is going to be most inconvenient for the public, because they’ll have to go around, all the way through Unity, back on the 16 Road on the other side. So, we want to highlight that one.”
The closure will begin in July and run through August, 2024.
Find the Malheur National Forest’s news release on the project below:
(Release from the Malheur National Forest)
The Malheur National Forest is implementing a temporary road closure, while contractors complete bridge repairs. The closure will be effective July 2024 through August 2024, unless rescinded sooner.
The temporary closure will prohibit all travel on Forest Service Road (FSR) 1600-000 from the junction with FSR 1300-000 at Short Creek Guard Station and three-hundred feet to the East of Fopian bridge. FSR 1600 is a primary access route through the forest and this brief closure will cause significant changes in travel planning for forest users, as no passable detour route exists in the immediate area. Forest users hoping to utilize this route between Summit Prairie and Unity will have to navigate between common use areas using Highway 26 through Prairie City instead.
Closure signs will be posted on the ground, and a detailed map of the closure will be available on the Malheur National Forest website and at Forest offices.
For additional information about the Malheur National Forest, visit www.fs.usda.gov/malheur.
