Glacial melt forces evacuations in Alaska

National

FEARS of massive flooding following a glacier melt have forced residentd in Alaska to flee their homes.

Alaskans have started evacuating after a flood warning in Juneau was announced by The National Weather Service (NWS) office, a report by BBC said.

Glacial lake outbursts occur when a lake of melting snow, ice, and rain drains quickly. When meltwaters reach beyond a high water level from its usual level, they can overtop a glacier that was holding them back from bursting.

Local officials have confirmed that the water coming from the glacier has started to flow from the ice dam and flooding is expected to happe.

According to NWS, below major flooding levels begin at 14 ft., but Tuesday, they observed the water levels reaching 9.85 ft. and by Wednesday it eventually reached above 16 ft.

“This will be a new record, based on all of the information that we have,” a statement said by a weather service meteorologist, Nicole Ferrin.

On Sunday, Alaskan Governor Mike Dunleavy issued a disaster declaration due to the “imminent threat of catastrophic flooding from a glacier lake outburst flood (GLOF)” in the Juneau area.

Flooding in Alaska is notable for being a common problem since 2011.

In 2024, hundreds of houses were destroyed and mountain glaciers started to shrink due to the rising temperatures. (Theressa Faye Lacandazo, USC Comm Intern)