An ice jam formed at Bishop Rock on the Yukon River, downstream of Galena on the 26th and caused water to back up. flooding began during mid-morning of the 27th and flood waters did not recede until the 31st.
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Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS AFG wrote it up.
An ice jam formed at Bishop Rock on the Yukon River, downstream of Galena on the 26th and caused water to back up. flooding began during mid-morning of the 27th and flood waters did not recede until the 31st. All structures were impacted by the high water except those significantly elevated or protected by the dike which surrounds the airport. Almost all roads were washed out...with boats being used for emergency transportation. Power was out to most of the city. Many residents were evacuated to nearby villages or to Fairbanks. Ice chunks knocked some houses off their foundation. Other buildings had up to 8 feet of water. At 1830AKST on the 29th water started slowly falling as the ice jam eased a bit. It was not until the morning of the 31st when water levels fell below flood stage. Damage amounts are estimated and include 14 homes destroyed, 90 homes with major damage, and 55 homes with minor damage, and nearly 6 million dollars for emergency response and public infrastructure.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Fairbanks, AK wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 27, 1:13 AM AKST, 6 hours 47 minutes earlier.
NORTHERN ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FAIRBANKS AK 213 AM AKDT MON MAY 27 2013 .DISCUSSION... MODELS IN DECENT AGREEMENT THROUGH AT LEAST 48 HOURS. UPPER LEVEL TROUGH SWINGING EASTWARD ACROSS THE ARCTIC COAST TO THE CANADIAN BORDER BY THIS AFTERNOON. UPPER LEVEL RIDGE THAT IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE SURGE IN TEMPERATURES OVER NORTHERN ALASKA THAT WILL CONTINUE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE WEEK. TEMPERATURES HOVERED IN THE MID 70S TO LOW 80S ON SUNDAY. TEMPERATURES WILL LIKELY INCREASE A FEW MORE DEGREES FROM WED THROUGH FRI BEFORE A SLIGHT COOLING IN TEMPERATURES NEXT WEEKEND. THE UPPER LOW THAT WAS PICKED UP COMING OUT OF THE GULF OF ALASKA ON SUNDAY WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE WEST. MOST OF ITS ENERGY WILL MOVE INTO THE BERING SEA. BUT ANOTHER SMALL PIECE OF ENERGY WILL MOVE AROUND THE UPPER RIDGE AND COME BACK INTO MAINLAND ALASKA AND MAY BE THE IMPETUS FOR A FEW SHOWERS AND MAYBE EVEN A THUNDERSTORM TUE THROUGH THU. MODELS CONTINUE TO SHOW A LARGE COOL AIR MASS MOVE DOWN FROM THE ARCTIC NEXT WEEK. THIS WOULD SUPPLY SNOW TO THE ARCTIC COAST WHILE SOME SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE ISOLATED THROUGHOUT THE EASTERN INTERIOR. && .FIRE WEATHER... UPPER LEVEL RIDGE DRYING OUT NEARLY ALL OF NORTHERN ALASKA SOUTH OF THE BROOKS RANGE. THIS IS ALLOWING RH VALUES TO PLUMMET BELOW 15% IN SEVERAL AREAS WILL RAISE THE CONCERN FOR FIRE WEATHER WATCHES. && .HYDROLOGY... NUMEROUS TRIBUTARIES AND SMALL STREAMS REMAIN UNDER THE WATCH OR ADVISORY BECAUSE OF RAPID SNOW MELT. ICE JAM IN PLACE DOWN RIVER OF GALENA WILL REMAIN IN PLACE AND BACK UP WATER INTO THE VILLAGE OF GALENA. && .AFG WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... RED FLAG WARNING FOR AKZ220-AKZ221-AKZ222-AKZ223-AKZ224-AKZ225- AKZ226-AKZ227. FLOOD WATCH FOR AKZ216-AKZ220-AKZ222-AKZ223-AKZ224-AKZ226. && CF MAY 13
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Alaska in 2013Every state in 2013This day in weather historyWarnings in Alaska, May 2013
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 455577.