VIDEO: The City and Borough of Juneau issued a declaration of emergency on Sunday following a glacial lake outburst flooding event that swelled waters to record levels.
At least two structures were swept up into rushing waters and other structures were evacuated on Saturday after the flooding event filled Mendenhall Lake and Mendenhall River to dangerously high levels.
According to CBJ, the Mendenhall River banks “remain highly unstable.”
“At this time, the Mendenhall River banks remain highly unstable. All members of the public are strongly advised to stay away from the river to ensure safety and avoid obstructing response efforts,” CBJ wrote in a release. According to the National Weather Service, river waters reached a record-high of 14.97 feet on Saturday night, much higher than the previous high water mark of 11.99 feet from 2016.