Road Over Hells Canyon closed Aug 1-3 during select hours
By Garrett Christensen on Monday, July 31st, 2023 in More Top Stories Northeastern Oregon News
HELLS CANYON – (Release from Idaho Power) The road over Hells Canyon Dam will be closed to vehicle traffic during most of the day Aug. 1-Aug. 3 while Idaho Power crews use a crane to perform work on the dam.
On each of those days, the road will be closed to all vehicles from 8 a.m. to noon and again from 1 p.m.-4:30 p.m. The crane will be moved to allow traffic to pass from noon to 1 p.m. each day. All times are Mountain Standard Time. Travelers headed to the U.S. Forest Service visitors center or the boat launch area below the dam will need to plan their trips around the scheduled closures.
Traffic flaggers will be on hand for the closures. Pedestrians will be allowed to cross when Idaho Power crews determine it is safe to do so.
The closure is necessary for necessary maintenance that requires using a crane on top of the dam to install stop logs — large beams used to control water flow.
Located 21 miles downstream of Oxbow Dam, Hells Canyon Dam is the third and last project in the Hells Canyon Project. It began generating electricity in 1967 and has a generating capacity of 391,500 kilowatts, making it the second-largest of Idaho Power’s 17 hydropower facilities.
