The storm brought winds up to 40 mph to communities from Wainwright to Kaktovik, weather officials said. High waves damaged a road in Utqiagvik, affecting around five houses, residents reported.
The lack of winter sea ice is keeping temperatures warm. Climatologist Rick Thoman says it's a "very clear climate change signal."
Forecasters say they are expecting significant coastal erosion from Utqiagvik to Unalakleet from the second severe-weather event to hit the region in three weeks.
In Utqiaġvik, where the coast is eroding at some of the fastest rates in the nation, storms, flooding and thawing permafrost damage houses, roads and cultural sites. Ice forms later each year and storms are becoming longer and more severe.
A seawall planned for Utqiagvik is aimed at protecting residents from extreme storms while preserving their connection to the ocean.
Officials are still examining the substance in a lab to determine what it is, but DEC suspects it’s black tar or asphalt.
It's been a challenging year for whalers in Utqiagvik. Crews started going out in September, but found the bowheads weren't appearing in their usual concentrations in the waters closer to shore. On the water Nov. 16 Panigiuq Crew landed the first whale of the season for Utqiagvik, later than many people can remember ever bringing one in before.
Aerial surveys this September and October show the bowheads aren’t where they usually are.
The two men, who were both part of an active whaling crew, were in one of the boats on a towline, towing a whale to shore, when their boat flipped, according to fellow whalers who were there when it happened.
A September storm caused damage in Utqiagvik, and Gov. Bill Walker declared a disaster there last month.
The North Slope Borough will have access to help with recovery efforts for the autumn storm that pummeled the coastline earlier this year, causing more than a million dollars worth of damage.
The declaration gives the far-north community of Utqiagvik access to state money to help repair damaged infrastructure like roads.
The storm began Sept. 28 and continued for several days. A handful of Utqiaġvik’s roads were damaged or destroyed, and the community's freshwater source was nearly compromised.
Disaster funds are reserved for single events, and storms that collectively cause much damage aren't often individually large enough to count as disasters.
Cleanup and recovery from the recent storm that battered the North Slope coastline may carry a price tag exceeding $10 million.
HEALY, ALASKA—Bitter winters still dominate life in the Alaskan interior, but a practiced eye can spot the signs of a warming climate, particularly in the ground. Beneath the rolling fields of tussock scattered just north of the Alaska Range, what was once permanently frozen is starting to thaw. The impacts could ripple across the planet.
4-29-14 Sea ice rescue - Barrow, Alaska, USA
This early in spring, the season usually only starts, but the weather patterns have been changing, and so has been the harvest time, Donovan said.
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