Flooding in the City of Buckland. (Photo Credit: National Weather Service Fairbanks) Buckland, Alaska (KINY) - A disaster has been declared for the Northwest Alaska City of Buckland and Native Village of Buckland after an ice jam on the Buckland River caused severe flooding in the city.
The declaration by Governor Mike Dunleavy activates the state’s Individual and Public Assistance disaster recovery programs.
Buckland and the Northwest Arctic Borough had already declared disasters due to flooding that began May 12th.
The flooding brought more than five feet of water and river ice, which inundated homes and forced evacuations.
A boil water notice is in effect because of impacts to the water treatment plant.
Governor Dunleavy Declares Disaster for Flooding in Buckland einnews.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from einnews.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Mark Thiessen May 13, 2021 - 5:28 PM
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) â An ice jam has caused widespread flooding in the community of Buckland, in northwest Alaska, officials said Thursday.
âEven using hip waders, I canât leave my house because the water is too deep,â said Nathan Hadley Jr., the vice mayor of Buckland. He called the flooding the worst heâs seen in two decades there.
âMost of the town has been inundated, and the access road to the airport has been cut off by the floodwaters,â said Scott Berg, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Fairbanks.
There are volunteers using boats to take people around town, to the store and to deliver people to the air strip or pick them up for one of the two daily flights into town, Hadley said.
Flooding in Buckland reaches homes, cuts off access roads and airport Aaron Morrison
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - An ice jam that formed Wednesday evening on the Buckland River has flooded the village of Buckland, leaving the town without road and airport access according to reports from the River Observation Center and State Emergency Operations Center.
Buckland, which is 75 miles southeast of Kotzebue, is a village of about 500 residents. With water continuing to overflow the banks and the ice jam remaining in place, the National Weather Service out of Fairbanks has issued a flood warning for the area.
A Flood Warning has been issued for the village of Buckland along the Buckland River due to an ice jam. Water has inundated most of town with road access to the airport cut off by flood waters. Water levels are expected to remain high until the downstream ice jam clears. pic.twitter.com/i568zZirIw NWS Fairbanks (@NWSFairbanks) May 13, 2021