River Changes – North Channel Blocked – 1961
North Channel Blocked – 1961
Dry Channel Causes Problem of Sewage
The plugging of the north channel of the Clark Fork River Thursday morning resulted in an outpour of sewage onto dry land west of Higgins Avenue bridge.
Oscar Ostenson, district engineer for the State Highway Department, said Thursday night he had met with William (Red) Taylor, construction superintendent on the Higgins Avenue Bridge project, to find a solution to the sewage problem no later than Friday.
Plugging of the north channel with a temporary earth dam was completed in a few hours Thursday morning.
Crew of the Bud King Construction Co., using materials from the island, blocked the channel by the use of bulldozers. The King firm is a subcontractor on part of the Higgins Avenue Bridge project, under the general contractor, Sletten Construction of Great Falls.
By noon Thursday, only a trickle of water remained in the north channel.
The above article appeared in The Missoulian on October 13, 1961.
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