Weather

The sunshine that Southeast Alaskans felt yesterday will go down in history. Multiple towns in the region reached record high temperatures.

The highest record breaking temperatures were in Yakutat and Juneau, which both reached 81 degrees. That broke Yakutat’s 1996 daily record by nearly 10 degrees and tied Juneau’s 1982 record.

Temperatures also broke or matched records in Haines, Gustavus and Klawock.

National Weather Service Meteorologist Grant Smith said it’s important to track record-breaking days. 

“So when we see these extremes, yes, it’s impressive,” he said. “If we see more of them in a short amount of time, then yeah, it could mean something.” 

Over decades, he says, that data can help tell the story of how the local climate is changing. But just a single day of record heat can’t alone tell that story.

This year, Alaska updated its heat advisory levels to match how temperatures feel in northern latitudes. 

In Southeast, a forecast of 80 degrees now triggers a heat advisory. Juneau just had its first one.

The new advisories reflect that hot weather often feels hotter here.

“The sun angle is so much higher, so all that light energy is much more direct on us, on the concrete, on our skin,” Smith said. 

Smith describes it as a flashlight shining down on a table. When it’s shining directly down, the light is concentrated in a small circle, so it’s more intense — that’s what Alaska is like in the summer. When the flashlight is angled, it shines as a large cone at a much lower intensity — that’s what we experience in the winter. 

Monday’s heat gave way to clouds and rain across much of Southeast on Tuesday. Aside from a few days of warmth here and there, cool weather has dominated this summer so far.

Correction: This article has been updated to specify that Yakutat and Juneau saw the highest record breaking temperatures in the region, but not the highest temperatures overall. 

Sunshine and warm temperatures brought a heat advisory to Juneau and surrounding communities on Monday.

The National Weather Service issued the advisory for Juneau, the Upper Lynn Canal, Gustavus, Hoonah, Tenakee Springs and Yakutat – where temperatures were expected to reach 80 degrees.

It’s the first-ever heat advisory for Juneau and much of the region, though the Weather Service issued similar advisories for the Haines Highway and Klukwan earlier this summer.

Heat advisories are new for Alaska. National Weather Service Forecaster Grant Smith says they started issuing them this year after establishing localized criteria that allows them to distinguish extreme heat conditions in Alaska from the Lower 48.

“We’re just not used to those warmer temperatures, and so we were starting off just working with our state climatologist and local management,” Smith said. “We have a threshold of 80 degrees is our starting point, and then we’ll adjust as need be going forward.”

Smith says Alaskans generally are not used to such high temperatures since they don’t happen very often. That can make it more dangerous for people with health issues and for pets.

“When we get to these warmer temperatures on sunny days, a car parked in a parking lot in the sun, an 80 degree temperature, the inside of the car can reach over 100 degrees in 15 to 30 minutes,” he said.

He also said that many people who have spent time outside Alaska notice that it often feels much warmer here than what thermometer shows. Part of that has to do with the sun’s angle.

“It’s so much more direct on us because it’s so much higher up,” he said. “It’s just all that sun’s energy is beating down right on you more directly, and so it feels warmer.”

Cloudy conditions are expected to return in the coming days, but while the warmth persists it’s important to stay hydrated, wear sunscreen and keep an eye out for heat exhaustion.

Like much of Alaska, Juneau has its share of disasters and emergencies. Part of living here is planning ahead for scenarios that may require evacuating your home. Juneau Animal Rescue wants to inform residents about how best to prepare to evacuate their pets too. 

They have a list of things all pet owners should know and have on hand to make sure their pets are safe in an emergency or crisis. 

Thomas Young-Bayer is an animal control officer. He said it’s a good idea to gather the things our furry friends may need for a few days away from home. 

“One of the best ways to prepare yourself, your family and your pets for an expected emergency is to pack a go-bag,” he said.

He unpacked his own go-bag for his dog and cat. In it: a muzzle, jars of kibble, and a well-loved blanket.

“These are a couple of my dog’s favorite toys,” he said, holding the disembodied arm of a stuffed animal. “And you know, they might even just be a scrap of a toy, but if that dog loves that, if that’s what helps it feel safe and familiar and with a new situation and want to play and kind of get out of its fear and anxiety stage, then that’s what you should grab and have ready to go.”

The go-bag should be waterproof and have the pet’s medications, three days worth of food, water, and hygiene supplies. 

For the full list, watch this video breakdown of the pet go-bag:

And Young-Bayer said Juneau Animal Rescue can be that temporary landing place for pets in emergencies. 

“Whether they be fire, flood, landslide, or people who are suddenly unhoused for another unexpected reason, or even expected reasons, such as eviction,” he said.

If that moment ever arises, he said there are some things pet owners can do to make it easier for JAR to house pets, like making sure pets are spayed and neutered, and their vaccinations are up to date. Pet owners should give JAR all their pet’s information: medical history, vaccination and sterilization records, microchip numbers, and photos of the pets with their people. 

The organization keeps that in a file with the owner’s contact information, he said. That also helps if a pet gets loose in an emergency or is otherwise separated from its family. 

“Having them microchipped is very, very helpful for us to identify who a particular pet is that we might encounter and who that pet belongs to and where its home is,” Young-Bayer said.

JAR offers microchipping and their staff can scan a pet’s existing microchip to make sure the information is up to date.

But the best way to keep your pets safe in the event of a landslide or flood, he said, is to identify a friend or family member in Juneau who lives outside of the same hazard zone, is familiar with your pet, and can be prepared to care for the animal if you’re evacuated.

Young-Bayer also encouraged pet owners to be prepared for their pet to be anxious—dogs may be more reactive in a crisis, and cats may hide in hard to reach places. And he said, if there’s a known threat of an emergency, bring outdoor cats inside where they’ll be easier to evacuate. 

If Juneau residents have a pet emergency, they can reach animal control by calling JAR or through the Juneau Police Department after hours dispatch line at 907-586-0600.

When Billy Owens saw the fire getting close to his property near Bear Creek last Friday, he and his wife put their seven kids in a car. By the time they finished packing, the flames were on their land.

“We just had to make quick decisions,” he said. “Decide the most important stuff, like the cook stove and the things we need to survive.”

He also needed to get 24 birds – ducks and chickens – to safety. Owens put them in cages and strapped them to a four-wheeler. He said it was the only hope for a future for their farm.

“I just stacked the ducks and the chickens on there and apologized for the wind, and we went,” he said. “And they didn’t like it, but we all made it.”

After a week that saw wildfires break out across much of Alaska, the Bear Creek Fire is the state’s highest firefighting priority. It started during the lightning storm on June 19, burning over 26,000 acres on both sides of the Parks Highway which connects Fairbanks to Anchorage.

Laura Knowles evacuated with her family, too. She said they lost their log cabin at Bear Creek in a fire eight years ago. Since then, she’s lived in a bus with four of her younger children.

This weekend, the wildfire destroyed that. Knowles said she was devastated.

“Ever since I was a little kid, I dreamed (of) living in Alaska off grid. This was my off-grid home,” she said in a message. “I am trying to process this all and helping my children process it too.”

Denali Borough Mayor Chris Noel says officials are still assessing the damage, but he knows for certain that people have lost their primary residences. The borough’s preliminary estimate showed that 17 structures have been damaged by the Bear Creek Fire, at least six of them residential. At least 100 Healy residents were asked to evacuate.

“We feel for them,” Noel said. “We know this is a challenging and stressful situation, and we’re doing the best we can to put out timely public information.”

The area has been getting rain after what Noel called extreme fire behavior over the weekend. He says it will take a lot of precipitation to soak the dry duff layers that are fueling the fire, but the moisture is helping firefighters protect structures and slow the fire down.

Overall, around 300 fires were burning across Alaska as of Wednesday, though fire activity has slowed down beginning with Tuesday’s cooler weather. Fire managers were focused on several fires near Fairbanks, as well as fires along the Denali Highway, near Tok and east of Delta Junction.

The forecast showed warmer weather and potential for thunderstorms returning in the next few days.

Meanwhile, the Owens family is living on a neighbor’s land. The night they evacuated, the family camped at a gravel pit across the Nenana River, thinking they would be safe there. But they woke to see that the fire had jumped the highway and was approaching the river, so they had to evacuate again.

“The sky looked like the world was ending,” he said.

Owens says that back on their land, the fire had destroyed the RV they had been living in, along with gear and tools worth thousands of dollars. They also lost family photos and keepsakes they can’t replace.

But Owens says he’s thankful for the community that stepped up to offer his family clothes and supplies. He was also happy that the frame of the cabin he was building survived.

“The only thing I lost was the home I was staying in, but I still have the tools to rebuild,” he said.

The Denali Borough and fire managers will hold a community meeting on Thursday at 6 p.m. at the Tri Valley School to share updates and connect with people whose property was damaged or lost.

Wildfire activity exploded across Interior Alaska late last week amid widespread red flag warnings and the state’s first-ever heat advisory.

Dozens of lightning- and human-caused fires have started, intermittently closing major highways and leading to the evacuations of hundreds of people around Fairbanks, Healy and Tok. Some homes and other structures have burned, but it is not clear yet how many.

A spokesperson for the federal Bureau of Land Management’s Alaska Fire Service said in an email that experienced wildfire managers have told her that this year “feels different.”

“What stands out is the number of fires immediately threatening communities – and the number of evacuations happening simultaneously – which they say is unprecedented,” Beth Ipsen said.

Cooler, wetter weather is in the forecast, but a spokesperson for the Alaska Forestry Division cautioned that Alaskans should not expect that to slow down the fires very much.

“The rains that are in the forecast now for us, with this cool weather, is pleasant,” Sam Harrel said. “But it’s not going to be enough rain to end the current wildland fire situation. It may slow it down a little bit — it may give firefighters more of an opportunity to actively engage with a fire.”

Bear Creek Fire

The Bear Creek Fire, near Healy, is burning on both sides of the Parks Highway, which is the main artery connecting Fairbanks to Anchorage. Ipsen said the fire is the state’s top priority.

Harrel said that fire, which was discovered on June 19, was caused by lightning and fueled by wind.

“It grew rapidly towards the north along the Parks Highway,” he said. “There’s a lot of thick black spruce stands in that area, and that area has had challenging wildland fires for the past several years.”

Denali Mayor Chris Noel said borough officials do not have a comprehensive count yet, but they know that some homes have burned. Noel did not have a count of how many people have been evacuated.

Heather McGrorty said she lives five miles north of the Bear Creek Fire. She and her husband knew they had to act when they saw the fire had crested the ridge at June Creek.

“We had to start getting everything ready,” she said. “We have three big, large pools that we had to fill up, put sprinklers out and start moving stuff around the yard to be able to keep it safe.”

McGrorty said she has asthma and on Saturday she evacuated with her two daughters, 8 and 12, to stay with family in Healy. She said her husband stayed to clear their 40-acre property and cut trees.

“He is protecting our home,” she said. “We don’t really live anywhere else. We’re there all year round. Whether we have 10 feet of snow or the fire, we try not to leave.”

Harrel said the fire had jumped the Parks Highway and is burning on either side of the road. He said that, as smoke and fire conditions allow, pilot cars are leading groups of motorists through the fire area between mile markers 259-278. But he encouraged people traveling between Anchorage and Fairbanks to take the long way around.

“We’ve told a lot of people how to get to Fairbanks by taking the Glenn Highway over to Glenallen and then going north up to Delta and coming around,” he said. “It’s a beautiful scenic drive. It’s a little longer, but it’s not impacted by the fires like the Parks Highway has been.”

Evacuations near Fairbanks

About 200 households in the Fairbanks area have been evacuated from neighborhoods north and west of town. Residents of several other neighborhoods on the fringes of the city are under less severe notices to prepare to evacuate from smaller fires, like the Nenana Ridge Complex.

Fairbanks Borough Mayor Grier Hopkins said no structures have burned in the borough so far, but there were some close calls over the weekend in the vicinity of the Himalaya Road Fire, just northeast of town.

“There were six homes that were protected by firefighters — burned right up to the edge of the home and the property,” he said. But even though the firefighters couldn’t see maybe 20, 30 feet, they were still able to protect those homes.”

Sharon Baker said she was at her log cabin at the lower end of Haystack Mountain, less than a mile from the Elliott Highway, when the Himalaya Road Fire broke out. She said she was working outside and saw tall, billowing clouds of smoke rising above her cabin. Later, Baker got a “Go Now” evacuation alert.

“I already had clothes, tax and other important documents as well as a bag of toiletries by my front door. I grabbed them and other items and left,” she said. “I was prepared.”

Baker evacuated with her neighbor to nearby Hilltop Gas Station, which has a large parking lot.

“We remained there, while I was in touch with other neighbors who I knew were packing to leave but declined help. Quite a few of us from Haystack Mountain arrived shortly after receiving the alert.”

Baker said she was able to return to her home the next morning. But she was deeply touched by the many people who offered rooms in their homes and help with evacuating people, equipment and animals.

“This is a community that takes care of each other,” she said.

Now over 3,000 acres, the Himalaya Road Fire is the state’s second highest firefighting priority, behind the Bear Creek Fire. A federal firefighting crew is traveling up to Alaska from the Lower 48 to help contain it.

The borough’s animal shelter is currently open to taking in evacuees’ pets. The borough is also offering hotel vouchers through the Red Cross for people who have had to flee the fire. Hopkins said that if the number of evacuees continues to climb, the borough will consider setting up a shelter.

Seven Mile Lookout Fire

Further south, residents of the Tok neighborhoods near Butch Kuth Avenue, Osprey, Moose Nugget, and Goshawk Road were asked to evacuate this morning due to the uncontained Seven Mile Lookout Fire southwest of town. A community wildfire meeting will be held today at 6:00 PM at the Tok Dog Mushers Association

More crews expected from the Lower 48

The fires grew rapidly during a spell of hot weather that led the National Weather Service to issue Alaska’s first-ever heat advisory. But the area was already primed for intense wildfires.

“Even though we had a cool May and start of June, we weren’t getting much rain, so the forest was drying out,” said Rick Thoman, a climate specialist with the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. “The duff — that organic material that’s right on the ground — that accumulates year after year because we have very slow decomposition rates. Which means there’s lots of fuel available.”

Thoman said the dry fuel, hot weather and abundant lightning all contributed to the fires.

“Thunderstorms were able to form each afternoon, and because it was a slow changing pattern, we got day-after-day of lots of thunderstorms,” he said. “Most areas that were getting lightning were getting little or no rain.”

Thoman pointed out that fires like this are nothing new in Alaska, but intense wildfire behavior should be expected more and more frequently as the climate changes.

“Wildfire is a natural part of the northern boreal ecosystem, but we’ve seen much more fire in recent years — especially the frequency of those big seasons and these explosive periods within the fire season,” he said.

Harrel, of the Alaska Division of Forestry, said more firefighters are on their way from the Lower 48 to help the Alaska crews already fighting the fires.

“We have a jet load coming to Fairbanks with four hot shot crews on it, and those crews will be assigned to fires that are highest in priority based on defense of life and defense of property.” he said.

He said more crews would be flying in on Wednesday, but they hadn’t firmed up the staffing for flight planned for Friday yet.

“We are also in competition with the lower 48 for resources, and as their fire season starts to grow and escalate, it becomes challenging,” he said.

The Anchorage Fire Department is also sending up seven volunteer firefighters to help suppress the Bear Creek Fire near Healy.

Meanwhile, Harrel said road highway closures are in flux, so travelers should check conditions by calling 511 before heading out.

“Don’t drive into dense smoke,” he said. “You have no idea what’s in there.”

Alaska Public Media’s Chris Klint contributed reporting.

A surge in wildfire activity across Interior Alaska following the summer solstice has left crews facing several massive blazes, including major fires in the Interior that briefly closed the Parks Highway and prompted evacuations.

According to a situation report from the Alaska Interagency Coordination Center, 28 new wildfires were discovered statewide Saturday and Sunday, with a total of 181 active Sunday. The fires are burning on about 98,000 acres in total. About 350 firefighters are actively fighting 21 fires.

In an overview posted online Saturday night, staff with the federal Bureau of Land Management’s Alaska Fire Service said all Alaska crews have been assigned to fires, with assistance being requested from the Lower 48.

“With firefighting resources stretched thin, BLM AFS and the Alaska Division of Forestry & Fire Protection are working together to prioritize responses where firefighter and public safety are most at risk,” officials said. “The two agencies are coordinating closely to share resources.”

The division said on Facebook Sunday morning that the Bear Creek Fire near Anderson, along with two other fires in the area, had reached 20,000 acres. By 4 p.m. Saturday the blaze had burned across the Parks Highway, prompting its closure near Mile 270, but by 9 p.m. one lane was open to intermittent traffic.

“The pilot car may have multiple hours between the north and south routes,” federal officials said. “Expect long delays.”

Evacuation orders were issued for several nearby residential areas, including the Bear Creek and June Creek subdivisions west of the highway.

Farther north along the Parks, the division said the Nenana Ridge complex of fires was burning about 15,000 acres between Mile 322 and 332. Along the Elliot Highway north of Fairbanks, the Himalaya Road complex was burning about 30,000 acres. Evacuation orders have been posted for parts of the region by the Fairbanks North Star Borough.

Division officials said more restrictions on Parks and Elliott Highway traffic were likely Sunday. They urged Alaskans in wildfire areas to sign up for wildfire alerts, prepare defensible spaces around their homes and be ready to evacuate.

In addition, they asked people not to fly drones in wildfire areas, which threatens air support from tanker aircraft and helicopters.

“Flying drones or UAS (unmanned aircraft systems) within or near wildfires could cause injury or death to firefighters and hamper their ability to protect lives, property, and resources,” state officials said. “If you fly, we can’t!”