OLYMPIA - The boat launch at Teanaway Junction on the Yakima River near Cle Elum has temporarily been closed while the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) works to correct a potential safety hazard.

Signs announcing the closure were posted March 31 as WDFW personnel made plans to move a log structure, designed to provide habitat for fish, away from the launch site. Plans also call for shoring up the bank around the launch to protect it from further erosion.

"Due to changes in the river current, the log structure has come to pose an impediment to boats approaching and leaving the launch," said Steve Sherlock, WDFW access site manager. "We plan to move it downstream to improve access to the launch and avoid a potential safety hazard."

Cindy McMinn, WDFW regional lands agent, said the department hopes to complete the work by the end of April.

"We recognize that the Teanaway launch gets a lot of use, and we plan to get the work done as soon as possible," said McMinn, noting that the nearest public boat launch is eight miles downstream at the Thorpe Access Area.

"This is a reproduction of a Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife document and is not the official document or regulations of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. The accuracy of the reproduction cannot be guaranteed by WDFW."