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New photos released of battered dock that washed onto WA coast

SEATTLE — The state on Friday released new photos of a dock that may have broken loose during Japan's tsunami and landed on the Washington coast at Olympic National Park.

State researchers with the Department of Ecology released pictures they shot Thursday after a 3-mile hike to reach the battered dock near Forks.

Their goal was to remove invasive species that were attached to the dock so they don't move into the water or land here.

They said waves and weather have already scoured most of the aquatic plants and animals off the dock's main body, but they removed dock's side bumpers to see what potential invasive species may still be on the dock.  The team took samples for laboratory analysis.

The crew also said it cannot find any markings on the dock that could confirm if it came from Japan.