Bridge Closure Sparks Emergency Response Fears
Shore Report special edition
Dean Lake Road bridge closed for undetermined time period
Dean Lake Road bridge in a 2022 photo. © John Degen
The Municipality of Huron Shores has closed Dean Lake Road bridge spanning the Mississagi River, after receiving expert advice indicating it represents a danger to users. Approximately 130 permanent residents in the Dean Lake area are immediately affected by the closure, which comes with no timeline for repairing and re-opening the important crossing.
Kresin Engineering, a Sault Ste. Marie based firm contracted to assess the condition of the bridge, returned a damning report to Huron Shores CAO and Clerk Natashia Roberts. Kresin’s review, delivered January 8, 2025, was based on a load evaluation report completed as far back as 2020, several more recent inspection reports, and a concrete and steel assessment from last year. Based on those historic reports, Kresin recommended an immediate closure followed by a detailed assessment and repair plan.
Information on the closure and bridge rehabilitation will be shared at a January 15 Huron Shores Council meeting in Iron Bridge. Concerned citizens can attend the meeting in person at the Iron Bridge Lions Hall (10 Clarissa Street), or online if they register for Zoom access.
Meanwhile, news of the bridge closure sparked concerned discussion on the Huron Shores Community Bulletin Board on Facebook. A backroad detour exists for getting local residents out to Hwy 17 at Iron Bridge, but it is slower and narrower, and adds considerable time to the journey. Folks on Facebook familiar with the area expressed worries about school buses and emergency vehicle access to the Dean Lake area, especially after a heavy snowfall.
“Usual run home from Iron Bridge is 20 mins,” commented one resident. “Took 50 today with dry road conditions.”
The Dean Lake Road bridge was originally opened in 1908, and has been repaired or rehabilitated several times before; in 1963 for deck replacement, in 1988/89 after an earlier Kresin Engineering inspection found the entire structure to be in poor condition, again in 2004 for deck repairs, and then again in 2007/08 for another complete deck replacement.
The need for further repairs will not come as a surprise to watchful residents, as a 2023 public information session was held by Huron Shores Council, and a report on the bridge’s deterioration delivered. At that time, it was recommended only to limit traffic to light passenger vehicles and impose a height restriction. The information session included a call to action for letter-writing to federal and provincial officials.
Shore Report will continue to follow this story.