McCANN BRIDGE REPLACEMENT
PROJECT

McCann is in an unincorporated area of Humboldt County located along the wild and scenic Eel River. Dyerville Loop Road is connected to McCann Road and the east side of the Eel River via a seasonal low-water crossing over the Eel River. This crossing becomes inundated and is formally open only 5 months a year. When the low-water crossing is closed, the residents on the east side of the river use a County-operated ferry boat.
 

In 1950, the Lindsey Lumber Company relocated to McCann from Bridgeville. Around this time, Humboldt County began operating the ferry to get residents and lumber mill workers across the river during the winter high water.
 

The existing low-water crossing was built in 1965 and is reportedly the third bridge at this location. Each of the prior two bridges were washed out during flooding. The current bridge spans about half of the Eel River's typical channel width, and each spring the County grades roadway approaches across the gravel bar to allow for summertime use.

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Unfortunately, several fatalities have occurred at the bridge over the years. In 1956, a man fell off the bridge and drowned while trying to push a vehicle after the driver dropped a wheel off the side of the bridge. In 1957, a husband and wife drowned when they fell in the river while trying to retie their boat during a rising river. In 2015, a woman drowned when her kayak overturned while going under the existing bridge. The swift water pinned her kayak against the steel supports, and she was unable to escape. The McCann Bridge Replacement Project aims to address these safety-related issues in addition to providing a reliable, year-round crossing.

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Read more about the proposed McCann Bridge Replacement Project.