POST FALLS, Idaho — From signs to sirens, people are warned away from the Post Falls Dam, as reported by our news partner the Coeur d'Alene Press.
Apparently, none of that matters. Citizen disregard for their own safety has Avista Utilities asking local governments to increase public safety measures.
Kootenai County already has a waterways ordinance that designates the Post Falls Dam on the Spokane River as a "no wake zone," but Avista thinks all public access should be prohibited.
Proposed wording for the revised ordinance would have certain areas above and below the Post Falls Dam's north, middle and south Spokane River channels as "no entry" zones. If adopted, accessing those areas by "watercraft, vehicle, swimming, walking, wading, hiking, biking, rock climbing, fishing, or any other means" would be prohibited at all times.
The energy company has paid considerable attention to public safety for decades, Avista Hydro Safety, Security and EAP Specialist Macs Mikkelsen said in a meeting with Kootenai County commissioners this week.
Mikkelsen reminded commissioners of the April 24, 1989, event that swept four individuals — two grandfathers and their grandsons — through the Post Falls Dam floodgates. Only one survived.
"It was just a horrible tragedy that we relive it seems like daily," Mikkelsen said. "Especially in the summer when you see people out there."
That led to a county ordinance designating the area as a "restricted access zone" where "swimming and the operation of vessels are prohibited or restricted due to dangerous conditions resulting from the operation of Post Falls Dam."
Still, Avista North Idaho Region Business Manager Todd Kiesbuy said the company is seeing a recent rise in unsafe recreation around the facility.
"It seems like it has become tenfold from years past," he said.
The increase is despite numerous safety precautions Avista is using to warn the public of potential danger, he said, including signs and sirens.
"There has been a pretty blatant disregard for the signs," Kiesbuy said. "We've also noticed desensitization to alarms and warnings that we have in place … I think we hit (the alarm system) maybe 30 times last year alone."
Some recent incidents documented by Avista between 2020 and 2021 include:
• An individual climbed on top of the North Channel private bridge on June 14 and jumped when approached by Avista staff.
• A pair of swimmers were found resting on rocks below the North Channel spillway gates last July 12.
• An individual climbed onto the South Channel to vandalize the dam last July 10 while floodgates were closed.
"It just makes me shiver a little bit, to be quite honest with you," Kiesbuy said. "The spill gates were closed when he was doing this, but when it's open in emergency cases, there's no chance of survival."
When the gates are open, water can rush through the spillways at a rate of 3,000 to 4,000 cubic feet per second (CFS), Mikkelsen said. On Monday morning, Avista reported online that the Spokane River below Post Falls was at about 2,410 CFS, and about 2,260 CFS was flowing into the South Channel. Those numbers are expected to decrease, according to the website.
"It's a very, very dangerous situation," Mikkelsen said.
Kiesbuy and Mikkelsen also referenced a photo taken last month when Avista staff found two unauthorized ropes hanging from the North Channel bridge. Two public warning signs that read "DANGER. STAY OUT, STAY ALIVE" were in plain view directly adjacent to the ropes in the photo.
"Before we were able to get those removed, a teenager was using those ropes as swings and slipped and fell and broke her collarbone," Mikkelsen said.
In just two hours last Monday, beginning at 4 p.m. when the temperature warmed up, Avista staff counted between 11 and 13 violations, Kiesbuy said.
He suggested that the climb is in part from the growing population and community members enjoying the Post Falls Community Forest, which encompasses about 500 acres west of the Avista property.
"It has two miles of shoreline, and I believe approximately 21 miles of trails," Kiesbuy said. "It is a great public recreation space, but it also exposes our facility and signage."
Avista suggested enforcement of the rule, if passed, could be a joint effort by the Kootenai County Sheriff's Office and Post Falls Police Department.
The draft ordinance needs to be submitted for legal review before the board can take any action, the commissioners explained, but they expressed their support for Avista staff concerns.
Coeur d'Alene Press is a KREM 2 news partner. For more from our news partner, click here.
