Juneau's glacial outburst flooding along the Mendenhall River has crested Wednesday morning, with flood barriers in the area generally holding despite some leaks.
The flood reached a record-breaking crest of 16.65 feet at about 8 a.m. Water continues to seep into Mendenhall Valley neighborhoods.
The HESCO barriers stacked in backyards along the river are blocking many homes from flooding, but water is seeping under and through the barriers on parts of Marion Drive, Killewich Drive, Meander Way and Riverside Drive. View Drive is flooded — that street is not protected by a barrier.
Some roads along the river have pooled with water, with multiple homes pumping water out of their crawlspaces. Alaska Electric Light & Power has cut power to some flood-affected streets.
Despite seepage, Ryan O’Shaughnessy, the city’s emergency program manager, says “there is no reason to believe there is imminent failure” of the HESCO barriers.
Some residents are reporting that water is reaching their properties when they hadn’t in prior floods. The city is helping residents pump out water from yards that have flooded.
The city is deploying supersacks to one section of the barriers where it appears a tree struck it — but no water has broken through at that point. The city continues to ask people to stay away from the area, and recommends evacuating immediately.
For more coverage from Juneau visit ktoo.org/flood.
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