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Little Goose Lock Reopening Delayed Until April 11 by Matthew Weaver Capital Press, March 30, 2017

Repairs have further delayed the reopening.

Boaters, including wheat shippers, will have to wait longer for the navigation lock at Little Goose Dam on the Snake River near Starbuck to reopen.

The lock now is expected to reopen April 11, after being closed since Dec. 12 for an extended maintenance outage.

The Corps discovered that part of a new bottom hinge on the north gate was not placed in the correct position by a previous contractor.

The planned fix is to machine the vertical metal section on one of the gates that seals up against the lock wall when the gates are closed.

The south gate's bottom hinge also was installed out of position, and corrections there have been made, the Corps said.

It hired a new contractor earlier this month to finish work on the Little Goose lock as it became apparent that the March 20 deadline for reopening the lock would not be met.

Before the hinge issue was discovered, the Corps had expected to have the lock back in service April 2.

The locks at seven other Columbia and Snake river dams have reopened after being closed for the extended maintenance outage.