diff --git a/webapp/src/main/webapp/js/vitroUtils.js b/webapp/src/main/webapp/js/vitroUtils.js
index 2eae74bb0..2156515a0 100644
--- a/webapp/src/main/webapp/js/vitroUtils.js
+++ b/webapp/src/main/webapp/js/vitroUtils.js
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ $(document).ready(function(){
     // fade out welcome-message when user logs in
     jQuery.extend(this, i18nStrings);
     
-    jQuery('section#welcome-message').css('display', 'block').delay(2000).fadeOut(1500);
+    jQuery('section#welcome-message').css('display', 'block').delay(2000).fadeOut(1500, function() { jQuery('section#welcome-msg-container').remove(); });
     
     // fade in flash-message when user logs out
     jQuery('section#flash-message').css('display', 'none').fadeIn(1500);