Governor Mike Dunleavy issued a disaster declaration Thursday for communities in western Alaska hit by a powerful storm earlier in the week.
The state Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management said in a press release that flooding and storm surge damaged homes and infrastructure during Wednesday’s storm. Kotzebue was under a mandatory evacuation, which has since been lifted. According to officials, there are no reports of injuries at this time.
Carter MacKay is a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. He said initial forecasts overestimated tide levels by one to two feet, which was good for low-lying communities like Kotzebue and Shishmaref.
“As an overall trend, there was an abundance of high water and erosion across the west coast with some areas of damage, but it wasn't widespread impacts,” MacKay said.
The declaration activates public and individual assistance programs across the Bering Strait, Lower Yukon, and Kashunamiut school regions, as well as the Northwest Arctic and North Slope boroughs. Those programs help repair public infrastructure and provide aid to families whose homes were damaged.
State emergency officials are deploying response teams and have requested help from the Alaska National Guard and State Defense Force.
Incident Commander Mark Roberts said in the release that preparations made before the storm helped keep people safe, but warned that more bad weather is on the way. Flood warnings are in effect across western Alaska through Monday as another storm, the remnants of Typhoon Halong, approaches the Bering Sea.
MacKay said the weather service is already shifting its focus to the upcoming storm.
“It's looking a little bit worse in terms of really strong winds gusted about 70 to 80 miles an hour,” MacKay said. “So wind gusts could be even stronger with this next one moving in, which could lead to potentially more significant coastal impacts.”
Residents are urged to stay alert, follow local instructions and keep emergency plans ready.
