Steamboat Slough dike will be breached on Monday

The US Army Corps of Engineers plan to breach the dike in the Julia Butler Hansen Refuge on Monday, according to Project Manager Gail Saldana.

The dike will be breached in two places and it may take as little as three days or as long as two weeks for the Columbia River to move in.

"We think it may take three shifts," Saldana said.

The discovery of a sand lens has brought safety concerns to the forefront and the Corps of Engineers is requesting that Steamboat Slough be blocked off as far as 200 feet west from the westernmost breach.

"It's going to be imperative that people not come in there when we're breaching," Saldana said.