Ad hoc committee forms to explore safety on Camas bridge

For most of the year, the pedestrian bridge off Northeast Everett Street in Camas that crosses the confluence of Lacamas and Round lakes is an unassuming pathway, a route from one side of the lake to the other. In the summertime, however, the bridge transforms into a metal climbing gym for local youth eager to escape the heat and jump into the inviting water below. Most of those who use the bridge as an unofficial jumping platform have no idea how dangerous their actions can be. Two people recently lost their lives in this very spot — a 14-year-old Vancouver boy in 2019 and a 24-year-old man just two months ago. “I ride over that bridge about three times a week on my mountain bike,” Councilor Martin Elzingre said during a July 7 Camas City Council workshop. “I always stop and speak to people. Sometimes there are parents there. I always ask, ‘Are you aware that somebody died here?’ The answer is almost always, ‘No.’” The councilman said he often worries about the youth he sees recreating near the pedestrian bridge. “There’s a rope swing there, now, too. And sometimes those kids are really struggling to get out of the water,” Elzingre said. Camas Mayor Steve Hogan said he wants to improve safety on and near the bridge. The mayor has formed an ad hoc committee — including Elzingre, Councilors Tim Hein and Leslie Lewallen, City Attorney Shawn MacPherson, a Camas-Washougal Fire Department representative, and Camas Parks and Recreation Director Chris Witkowski — to investigate what the city might do to prevent future fatalities or simply educate the public about the dangers of jumping into the often frigid water below the bridge. “Knowing how to swim is one thing,” Witkowski noted during the council workshop, “but it’s also understanding the water they’re getting into. That water is cold in April and May. It can shock the system pretty quick.” Witkowski, who started his position with the city in early May, said he has been investigating the bridge’s history and the city’s previous safety education attempts. “The pedestrian bridge … has become a recreational amenity for many people in our community and, unfortunately, it has had some fatal consequences,” Witkowski said. Witkowski said the bridge was not designed to be an access point into the water, and there could be unintended consequences if the city allows safety devices like the throw ring local firefighters are pushing to install near the pedestrian bridge. “I don’t want to hide behind the liability issue, because we’re dealing with people’s lives, literally, and that’s a tough call to make,” Witkowski said. “But there is a liability issue to it. When we start to put out safety devices, then there is a liability on us to make sure that device is in good condition, that people know how to use it.” The safety issues surrounding the bridge are complex, Witkowski said, but he and other city officials hope the ad hoc committee can come up with some ideas to share with Camas officials later this year. “I don’t think we can eliminate the risk … we would have to (remove) the bridge, and I don’t think that’s feasible right now,” Witkowski said. “But we have to watch that we’re not condoning recreational activity on the bridge.” Kelly Moyer: 360-735-4674; kelly.moyer@columbian.com

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