Alaska weighs Juneau disaster declaration as glacier flood season nears

Alaska's Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management has received Juneau's request for a state disaster declaration ahead of the anticipated Mendenhall glacier outburst flood but is holding off on issuing one. The agency cites a statutory requirement that the disaster be imminent and wants to keep the governor's 30-day emergency-powers window intact for the active flood response period.

The timing distinction matters for Mendenhall Valley residents. A state disaster declaration unlocks Public Assistance, Individual Assistance, and Temporary Housing programs. Declaring too early risks burning through that window before the flood peaks. State public information officer Jeremy Zidek noted that FEMA also has requirements tied to the 30-day window. "We don't want to do that in a time when we're actively responding to the disaster. It just makes things a little bit cleaner for us," he said.

Zidek explained the two-part hold. "Our state statutes require that this disaster is imminent, so we're working very closely with CBJ and the National Weather Service to understand when this event will be an imminent event," he said. He added that a declaration activates the governor's emergency powers for 30 days initially, after which the state must go to the Alaska State Legislature to extend them. "We would like that 30-day window to be a little bit longer during the disaster event," he said.

CBJ Emergency Programs Manager Ryan O'Shaughnessy said the city is already operating under its own local emergency declaration, which lets it tap resources not ordinarily available to local government. He said a formal request for a governor's declaration will come once state drone monitoring and public assistance support are needed. "All indications that we've received are that the state will very seriously consider a pre-event disaster declaration again," O'Shaughnessy said.

How This Played Out Before

Juneau followed a similar sequence in 2025. Governor Mike Dunleavy issued a state disaster declaration on Aug. 10 of that year after hydrologic monitoring confirmed Suicide Basin water volumes at or above prior flood-of-record levels, with a release expected at any time. That declaration activated state assistance programs for Mendenhall Valley residents. CBJ and the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska issued coordinated emergency declarations alongside it.

The state's Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management director Brian Fisher and operations manager Jen Royer traveled to Juneau this week for planning sessions with local leadership. The State Emergency Operations Center will be closely monitoring conditions as the basin continues to fill.

How to Prepare