A glacial ice dam in Alaska burst, unleashing a flood

Homes and some businesses were damaged by floodwaters in Juneau, Alaska, after rainwater and snowmelt overtook an ice dam created by the Mendenhall Glacier.

JUNEAU, Alaska — In her yard under the blazing sun Wednesday, Debbie Penrose Fischer leafed through a water-logged cookbook with sentimental value that she hoped to salvage but doubted she could. Nearby, friends helped carry boxes out of her family’s garage, which was inundated this week after a lake dammed by the Mendenhall Glacier let rip — sending floodwaters into neighborhoods like hers that never had to worry about that threat before.

“We’re blessed,” she said. “Nobody was hurt. Lots of things I love are gone, and I don’t like that. But it’s just stuff, you know?”

About 100 homes and some businesses were damaged by rapidly rising floodwaters that crested around 3:15 a.m. Tuesday, according to initial estimates. In some areas, cars floated as people scrambled to evacuate. Fischer’s daughter, Alyssa, who lives across the street, said the water in the road at one point reached her hips.

The waters began receding Tuesday, and water levels had returned to the normal range for this time of year by Wednesday afternoon, the National Weather Service said.

https://www.nbcnews.com/science/environment/glacier-ice-dam-burst-juneau-alaska-flood-rcna165770

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