Rail bridge near Oakesdale purchased for demolition

Whitman County Commissioners Sept. 5 approved the purchase of a low, wooden rail bridge near Oakesdale with intent to tear it down. The span, owned by Union-Pacific, will be bought for one dollar, pending approval by state agencies, and taken out due to a high-water hazard.

After ice against the bridge caused flooding last winter, a meeting was held in Spokane in February at which representatives of the state Department of Transportation, Department of Ecology, Fish and Wildlife, Town of Oakesdale, Whitman County and Palouse Conservation District discussed the matter, among others.

Hydraulic m...