OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK — The area around a dock from Japan that washed up on a remote beach continues to be closed to the public as a Port Townsend contractor awaits a window of opportunity to remove it.
Olympic National Park has closed the coastal area between Goodman Creek and Jefferson Cove to all public entry to protect contractor and visitor safety, said Rainey McKenna, parks spokeswoman.
Trails were closed in December.
Work yet to begin
No work had begun by Thursday on removing the 185-ton dock that grounded near Mosquito Creek between the Hoh River and LaPush last December.
The dock is confirmed debris from the March 2011 tsunami in Japan. The Japanese government identified it through a serial number as coming from Misawa, a city of about 40,000 on the northern tip of the island.
The contractor, Undersea Co. of Port Townsend, had hoped to begin dismantling the dock this week, but tides and weather worked against that.
Work has to be done during low tide, and the lowest tides are occurring too late in the evening to give workers enough light, McKenna said.
Work could be postponed until Friday, March 15.
The work is expected to be finished by early April, depending on weather and tidal conditions.
The contractor will use concrete saws and heavy equipment to cut the dock into sections and a heavy-lift helicopter to move the sections off the beach to an inland staging area.
The dock’s location lies within the boundaries of both the park and the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary, managed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
“Human safety is our top priority,” said park Superintendent Sarah Creachbaum.
The dock cannot be towed off the beach at high tide because it has been bashed on the rocks since it washed ashore, McKenna said.
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