The National Weather Service said Anchorage and the surrounding area could expect rain throughout Sunday and the area should still be prepared for strong winds in the higher elevations and along Turnagain Arm. Winds could gust up to 80 or 90 miles per hour in those areas and up to 40 miles per hour in East Anchorage on Sunday.
Southcentral Alaska had braced itself for another day of strong winds like the ones that had knocked out power throughout Anchorage earlier this month. But by Sunday morning, the high winds had yet to materialize. There were only a few reports of power outages and power had been restored. Forecasters, however, said the stronger winds could smack the area on Sunday.
Steady rain had caused minor flooding in certain parts of the region by Sunday morning.
ANCHORAGE-Chester Creek, in the downtown area is at minor flood stage at four feet. There may be nuisance flooding along the bike trail. Campbell Creek is at bankfull. Precipitation in Anchorage should continue into the afternoon, tapering off. There should not be significant impacts.
SEWARD-A flood warning is in effect for Seward through 10 am Monday. There is currently some roadway flooding along Levy Road which was impacting travel. There also is some flooding along the bike path at Nash Road. Precipitation should be moderate through 10 am, and then lightening up with showers throughout the day, peaking in the early afternoon.
CORDOVA-There is a flood warning in effect. The Eyak River has risen four feet since mid-day Friday. It is still six inches below bankfull, but moderate to heavy rain is expected to last well into the evening. It’s very likely the river will exceed bankfull conditions at some point today. This could mean ponding and accumulation in the yards of homes close to the river.
Citizen reports from the upper hillside area of Anchorage. Jordan Shay an upper Bear Valley resident reported wind gusts last evening of 120 miles per hour.
Bob Lohr also called in from Glen Alps. He reported no visible damage currently at the partking lot but on the Blueberry knob trail, he said the winds were building and gaining in strength. He said they were gusting strong enough to knock someone down.
These were citizen reports, unconfirmed by the National Weather Service. If you have updates, please call the NWS line at 1-800-847-1739.
