The construction of the new Traffic Bridge has created a narrow channel with a fast current and people are asked not travel underneath it on the South Saskatchewan River.
City of Saskatoon officials said an unusually high hazard has developed under the temporary steel bridge built to facilitate the construction of the new Traffic Bridge.
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The Saskatoon Fire Department is concerned for boaters’ safety and is recommending that recreational activities in the area of the bridge be halted.
“We’ve had several reports of kayakers in the water at the Traffic Bridge and so where that channel narrows down the full volume of river is flowing through a very narrow channel so we’re asking kayakers to just stay out of that area,” Anthony Tataryn, assistant chief of staff development and safety with the fire department, said.
“They are paddling underneath the temporary bridge structure with a water hazard below, so there’s compound hazards there.”
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Hazards include the cold water, narrow channel and ice chunks that could be unpredictably flowing through that channel, potentially toward boaters, Tataryn said.
These hazards are compounded when travelling through a narrow channel under a temporary construction bridge used to transport construction materials and equipment.
The new Traffic Bridge is expected to be complete by October 2018.
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