Webinar details historic flooding from Halong’s impacts

By Amber McCain

Residents in Alaska’s Kuskokwim Delta were forced to leave their homes last month as ex-Typhoon Halong brought historic flooding and damaging winds to the region, webinar presenters said. Rick Thoman, climate specialist at the Alaska Center for Climate Assessment and Preparedness, and Ed Plumb, weather and flood hazards specialist at Alaska Center for Climate Assessment and Preparedness, shared details about the storm’s impact and forecasts.

ACCAP slide showing Kipnuk winds hitting a peak of 79mph before the power went out during ex-typhoon Halong in mid-October. 

“The low pressure two to four days prior to Halong caused some initial damage. How did that low effect influence the track and impact from Halong? How did this change emergency managers actions for evacuation?” Darryl Schaefer asked in the online chat. 

“I would say no direct meteorological impact on Halong from that storm. Obviously, the state already had some emergency management resources committed to Kotzebue and to help with that recovery. But beyond that, I’ll pass on the direct impacts to emergency management,” responded Thoman.

Storm surge forecasts varied widely.

“Kipnuk is not that high above sea level, so between 7.5 feet and 12.5 feet is a significant change in impacts to the community,” Plumb said. 

Preliminary readings showed water levels reached “about 8.64 feet” in Kipnuk, well into major flood stage. At Quinhagak, Plumb described a rapid rise: “By 5:30 a.m., the water was actually a little bit over six feet…Now the entire community is…underwater. People are disconnected.”

Plumb spoke on the unpredictability of extreme events.

“Even right up to the last hours, the messaging was similar to potential flooding in August 2024. But when we get these completely unprecedented events…by definition, that is going to be very, very difficult to message or communicate that potential threat.” Plumb added that geographic and environmental factors complicated forecasting. “From Nunivak Island down to the Kuskokwim Delta area…you have estuaries and inland waterways…That just adds more complexity to the modeling of these types of events.”

Slide from ACCAP webinar shows the impact of ex-Halong’s impacts on Alaska.

Some communities were spared the worst.

“Initially…the storm track was forecast to come up through there…It was showing the water could get up to 10 feet in Nome or up to four feet. The water got up just above four feet in Nome…they were spared, because the track of the storm shifted further to the east, and they were out of the way of the highest storm surge from this event,” Plumb said.

Thoman urged residents to track ongoing flood risks. 

“I encourage you to join that [flood observation] group if you are on Facebook and interested,” he said. He also emphasized the long-term nature of recovery. “We still have more than 1,000 Alaskans displaced from their community, and the recovery is going to take a long time.”

Thoman and Plumb noted these unprecedented events point to the importance of community preparedness as climate-driven storms continue to threaten Alaska’s low-lying regions.