Alaskan residents faced a disaster situation when a melting glacier caused severe flooding in the state's capital. It damaged more than 100 homes in the process.
The Mendenhall Glacier experienced melting causing a glacial outburst flood. This raised water levels in Juneau up to 16 feet. While there were no injuries, there was a lot of damage due to the rising waters. So what exactly happened?
Well, on August 1st the glacier's Suicide Basin began to reach its peak. This comes after there has been an unusual amount of rain over the past few weeks. That water from the Mendenhall Lake then poured into the Mendenhall River causing a rise in water levels. While the lake's water levels declined, all of that water went out into residential areas.
It's such a headache that the state needed help. Gov. Mike Dunleavy declared a state disaster emergency. This allowed Alaska to tap into increased emergency funds to help with glacier flooding damage.
Glacier Causes Flooding
"I am grateful no one has been injured or killed by this morning's outburst flood. Emergency responders and managers have done an outstanding job keeping their residents safe," Dunleavy said. "In addition to the Disaster Declaration, I have directed all state agencies to support the community as they deal with this major flooding."
According to officials, it's basically like "pulling out the plug in a full bathtub." The basins drain rapidly and all of that water has to go somewhere. There has been an increase in glacier outbursts since 2011. A University of Alaska Southeast environmental science professor Eran Hood told The Associated Press blames global warming and climate change as the reason why. He said that rising temperatures are having an effect on the glaciers.
According to a scientific study published in the peer-reviewed British journal Nature Communications, glacier melt is approaching a state of no return in Alaska. This could have a devastating effect.
"It's incredibly worrying that our research found a rapid acceleration since the early 21st century in the rate of glacier loss across the Juneau icefield," study lead author Bethan Davies, a glaciologist in the United Kingdom's Newcastle University, said in a statement.
