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Flood watch issued for Juneau, Gustavus and Yakutat ahead of stronger Tuesday storm
The National Weather Service in Juneau on Sunday issued a flood watch for Juneau, Gustavus and Yakutat from Monday evening through late Tuesday night, as another atmospheric river heads for the northern panhandle.
It follows last week's storms, which dropped 5.71 inches of rain on Ketchikan on Thursday alone, just short of the day's record of 6.56 inches, set in 1944.
Yakutat could see 4 to 6 inches of rain from Monday morning to Tuesday evening, and more than 8 inches above 1,000 feet. Juneau could get 2 to 4 inches, with more on south-facing mountain slopes, and Gustavus, Elfin Cove and Pelican 2 to 4 inches. Forecasters said rain in Juneau and Gustavus could look much like Friday's, which put the Salmon River and Montana Creek into minor flood stage. Isolated landslides are possible in steep terrain, the watch says.
Wind is coming with the rain. Wind advisories call for gusts up to 50 mph in Juneau, Haines, Sitka, Yakutat, Ketchikan and Metlakatla, starting Monday afternoon or evening in the north and Tuesday morning in Ketchikan, and mostly lasting into early Wednesday. Skagway is under a high wind watch for gusts up to 60 mph from Monday evening through Wednesday afternoon.
Forecasters expect a short break Sunday night into Monday before the front arrives. On the water, they expect gales in northern Lynn Canal and Clarence Strait and seas above 20 feet in outer coastal waters, mainly from Cape Edgecumbe northward. Snow levels are expected to fall to 1,000 to 2,000 feet Tuesday night and Wednesday, with light snow showers possible along the Klondike Highway and upper Haines Highway through Thursday.
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Latest
October 2026
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September 2026
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About Yakutat
Yakutat (Yaakwdáat), also known as the City and Borough of Yakutat, is a coastal Tlingit community in Southeast Alaska at the mouth of Yakutat Bay. It sits on the Gulf of Alaska north of the Inside Passage, near Hubbard Glacier.
Its economy is built around fishing: commercial salmon gillnetting, scallops, and the West Yakutat Pacific ocean perch and rockfish fisheries. The Situk River draws king salmon, sockeye and steelhead, and weak king runs bring repeated Chinook closures for sport and commercial fishers. Moose hunts in the surrounding country close when their quotas fill.
Its exposed coast takes the brunt of Gulf of Alaska storms, and gales, heavy seas, heavy rain and flood watches recur. Yakutat is among the rural communities served by the Alaska Village Electric Cooperative, whose rate requests shape local power bills.
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