Alaska News

With rain dwindling in southcentral Alaska, repair crews catch a break

With mostly sprinkles instead of heavy rain on Sunday, crews in both the Mat-Su Borough north of Anchorage and Seward to the south worked to repair the damage caused by flooding after days of steady rainfall. The National Weather Service predicted a lapse in the September deluge, with little more than showers expected through Tuesday in most locations.

"The main storm responsible for the recent weather will head north on Monday, bringing an end to the rainfall for southern Alaska," according to a post on the National Weather Service's Facebook page.

Among the issues on Sunday:

• In Mat-Su, water was on the Old Glenn Highway at the Knik River Bridge due to the rising Matanuska River.

• Mat-Su subdivisions named Heritage Park and Windsong were at risk of flood during the mid-afternoon high tide. Water advanced 30 feet towards homes in an hour, according to a report by the Mat-Su Borough, which made sandbags available to residents.

• In Seward, Lowell Point Road is closed. However, the state Department of Transportation was expected to have the Seward Highway clear of water Sunday afternoon. Water levels in most local tributaries were subsiding.

• Residents of flooded areas were urged to consider a tetanus shot or booster because flood waters can contain bacteria, fecal material and other disease-causing organisms. People working in flood waters with an open wound should get a tetanus shot if it's been more than five years since their last booster.

Craig Medred

Craig Medred is a former writer for the Anchorage Daily News, Alaska Dispatch and Alaska Dispatch News. He left the ADN in 2015.

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