“The wettest day ever”: At least 6 people missing, homes destroyed after record-breaking Southeast Alaska rainstorm
By Jessica Flores
3 December 2020
(USA TODAY) – Evacuations and search and rescue efforts were underway Wednesday after a record-breaking rainstorm swept across Southeast Alaska, triggering mudslides and widespread flooding.
Multiple precipitation records were broken Tuesday across the region, including a single-day rainfall record from 1946, according to the National Weather Service in Juneau.
“[Tuesday] was the wettest day ever recorded at our weather stations at the airports of Skagway, Haines, and in Juneau,” Meteorologist Aaron Jacobs told USA TODAY, adding that some areas have seen 30 to 40 inches of snow.
Haines, a community of about 2,000 people located in the northern part of the Alaska Panhandle, has been among the most devastated cities. Six people were missing and four houses destroyed as of 5:30 p.m. AST Wednesday, according to the Alaska Department of Public Safety. […]
Mayor Douglas Olerud declared a weather emergency early Wednesday after several roads were washed out, blocked, or flooded.
Olerud told USA TODAY on Wednesday the rainfall has so far caused about “a few million dollars” worth of damage to roads and infrastructure.
“It’s been a long day,” Olerud tearfully said over the phone. “I’ve lived here my whole life except for going to college and working down South for a couple of years. This is the largest national disaster that I’ve seen in town.” [more]
