Severe flooding is expected early next week along the Yukon Delta coast, including the communities of Hooper Bay, Nunam Iqua, and Kotlik. The flooding is predicted to begin at midday on Sunday, Oct. 20, and extending into the afternoon of Tuesday, Oct. 22.
Hooper Bay could see wind gusts as high as 50 mph, and water levels are expected to reach 5 to 7 feet above normal high tide, with the highest water levels seen on the evenings of Oct. 20 and Oct. 21. Access to the community’s airstrip could be threatened during the storm, according to the National Weather Service.
In Nunam Iqua, severe flooding is expected to inundate most of the community, with the highest water levels seen on the evening of Oct. 21, continuing into the following morning. Low-lying buildings may be inundated, and the community’s drinking water source and wastewater facility could be threatened.
Further up the coast in Kotlik, wind gusts as high as 55 mph may be seen, and water levels are expected to rise as much as 8 feet above the normal high tide line on the evening of Oct. 21. Access to and use of the airstrip may be threatened, and high water could also inundate low-lying homes and the community’s wastewater lagoon.
The coastal flood warning is just one of several issued by the National Weather Service covering a vast swath of Alaska’s western coast. Severe impacts are expected for communities further north. The Norton Sound community of Shaktoolik could see water as high as 12 feet above normal high tide. The National Weather Service has warned that the community’s seawall could be at risk of washing away.
According to Christian Landry, a meteorologist with the agency’s Anchorage office, less is known about a storm watch currently in place for the Kuskokwim Delta coast.
“So the system that we're looking at now, the low center itself, is much farther north. We're looking at the progression of this system tracking across the northeastern portion of Russia and into the Chukchi Sea, so north of the Bering Strait,” Landry said. “And that's going to lead to more questions on how far south the strongest winds are actually going to push into the western coast of Alaska, and whether or not those winds and the persistent south southwesterly flow will make its way into southwest coastline, particularly the Kuskokwim River Delta.”
Residents of communities all along Alaska’s western coast are advised to take the necessary actions to protect flood-prone property, and to anticipate the potential for travel to be severely affected until the storm dissipates at some point on the afternoon of Oct. 22.
This is a developing story and may be updated with additional information.
