Flood — Kenai Peninsula, Alaska

2025-01-12 to 2025-01-14 · near Homer, Kenai Peninsula, Alaska

Event narrative

Warm weather caused the breakup of ice on the Anchor River near Anchor Point. Initially river rises were reported on the portion of the Anchor River between the Sterling Highway Bridge and the Old Sterling Highway bridge, as ice moved downstream. Ice eventually became entrenched below the old Sterling Highway bridge, flooding the Anchor Point road and compromising residents ability to reach their homes. Additional widespread flooding was reported in the Anchor River Campground.

Wider weather episode

An extended period of very warm weather mobilized ice on the Anchor River, which caused rapid melting in January that loosened ice on the river and caused numerous ice jams along the river as ice moved from the upstream Anchor River gauge to the downstream gauge. This ice eventually flushed out by the end of January.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (59.7696, -151.8397)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1236593. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.