The lower Kuskokwim River community of Akiak has faced three days of near-total power outages as technicians troubleshoot the only working generator and the state stands by to coordinate a response.
According to Alex Jackson, a temporary Akiak city administrator, only one of three community power plant generators was operational as of May 24, and a coolant leak in that generator had almost completely cut power for days.
“They turned the power on just now and just for a couple hours so people can get gas from the gas farm,” Jackson said on May 24. “It's been off for three days, but today it was on for just a couple hours so people could get fuel.”
The fuel that is available is being used to power personal generators, which Jackson estimated around half the homes in the village of roughly 450 people have access to. He said that the sustained power outages were threatening people’s frozen food stores.
While the city had expressed a fuel shortage concern, the local Native corporation has donated a roughly one month supply of fuel to the city, according to the Alaska Division of Community and Regional Affairs. The agency is currently assisting Akiak in securing a bulk fuel loan as a safeguard while repairs to the power system are completed.
According to the state, the power outages have compromised the city’s water and sewer system, leaving the school unavailable as a potential shelter.
“We do have staff that's going to be on standby this weekend to address anything that might come up,” said Jeremy Zidek, a spokesperson with the Alaska Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management. “We've also contacted the [American] Red Cross, and they're able to provide shelter support in Akiachak or Bethel if that's needed.”
Zidek said that the state first received reports that Akiak was experiencing power issues on May 13, and that in recent days it had received a local disaster declaration from the city as well. But, he said that route is primarily taken with natural disasters and would hopefully be avoided.
“It sounds like the plant operator has kind of identified some of the steps that need to take place in order to get those other generators back up and running,” Zidek said. “While we hope that the steps we've taken will remedy the situation and the power will be able to be stabilized here in the next couple of days, we are aware that contingencies might be needed.”
This is a developing story. KYUK will post updates as more information becomes available.
