Update 10 p.m. Tuesday
Kaxdigoowu Héen Elementary, Mendenhall River Community School, Thunder Mountain Middle School and the district office will be closed to the public Wednesday and Thursday.
All staff and administrative offices at these facilities are temporarily relocating to the Dzantik’i Heeni campus at 1600 Renninger St. For in-person assistance with registration, enrollment or other administrative questions, staff will be set up and available at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday.
The district wants families to prioritize safety.
“If your family is actively preparing for potential flooding, securing your home, or filling sandbags, please prioritize your family’s safety. Do not worry about immediate registration deadlines or missing paperwork — we will gladly work with you to ensure your student is ready for the August 20 start date once the situation has passed,” said a district information release,” Superintendent Shawn Arnold said in a letter to families.
Administrative offices at all non-Valley campuses will remain open with their normal pre-service hours.
Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé student registration will still take place as scheduled. JDHS sports practices that have been scheduled should be confirmed through the coach.
Update 7:25 p.m. Tuesday
The City and Borough of Juneau is closing several facilities ahead of the imminent flood on Wednesday and Thursday including:
• Mendenhall Valley Public Library
• Dimond Park Field House
• Dimond Park Aquatic Center
• Nearby fields: Dimond Park, Melvin Park, Mendenhall River Community School
Trail closures include:
• Kaxdigoowu Heen Dei Trail
• Juneau International Airport’s Emergency Vehicle Access Road or EVAR, which is also known as the Airport Dike Trail
The city recommends residents in the flood zone to evacuate Wednesday as well.
Update 7 p.m. Tuesday
The City and Borough of Juneau is recommending residents in the flood zone to evacuate Wednesday. Flooding is expected along Mendenhall Lake and River Wednesday evening into Thursday morning.
CBJ is recommending the following evacuation routes to avoid congestion and road or bridge closures:
• Residents north of Division Street, please travel north on Riverside Drive, toward Mendenhall (Back) Loop Road and out of the inundation area.
• Residents south of Division Street, travel south on Riverside Drive, turn left on Stephen Richards Memorial Drive, towards Mendenhall Loop Road.
• On Rivercourt Way, travel south on Riverside Drive, toward Egan Drive
• On the west side of the Mendenhall River, travel west on Mendenhall (Back) Loop Road toward Auke Bay (avoid Back Loop Bridge).
• West of Brotherhood Bridge, travel west on Glacier Highway toward Auke Bay
An American Red Cross evacuation shelter will be available at the Floyd Dryden Gymnasium at 3800 Mendenhall Loop Road starting tonight at 8:30 p.m. While the shelter will be open and staffed tonight, the city – again – recommends evacuation tomorrow.
The Red Cross will have limited space to shelter pets, however Juneau Animal Rescue is also offering emergency sheltering for animals. JAR has also provided resources to help pet owners prepare for evacuation.
Non-emergency concerns can be directed to the city’s 24-hour Flood Information Hotline at 907-500-0890. If you or someone else is experiencing a life safety emergency, call 911 immediately.
CBJ is also providing emergency alerts via SMS by texting CBJ to 38276 or signing up here.
Update 5 p.m. Tuesday:
The National Weather Service issued a glacial outburst flood warning, alerting the public that the flood has begun, at 4:41 p.m. on Aug. 11. That’s just eight hours after the alert went out that Suicide Basin was full.
The Weather Service forecasts the flood will crest between 16.1 and 16.6 feet sometime between 5 a.m. and 9 a.m. Thursday.
Aaron Jacobs is the senior service hydrologist at the Weather Service. At a press conference organized by the multi-agency unified command Tuesday afternoon, he said he’s not anticipating this flood will break the 16.65 foot record set last year. An atmospheric river struck at around the same time Suicide Basin released in 2025, raising the river level before floodwaters hit. This year, there’s sun in the forecast instead.
At the press conference, officials strongly encouraged residents in the flood zone to evacuate.
Although officials said that the HESCO barriers are ready and built to the highest standards, City Manager Katie Koester emphasized that being near the barriers while the river rises can be life- threatening.
“Please evacuate. While the HESCO barriers, you know, are stronger than they’ve ever been, we really cannot rely on them and life safety is absolutely the most important thing,” Koester said.
That was echoed by Jacqueline Pata, vice president of the Central Council of the Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska.
“I’m going to say to our 422 tribal citizens in the evacuation zone, please pay heed to the warnings,” Pata said. “Please make sure that you’re prepared.”
Jacobs said to check the Suicide Basin monitoring page for an updated forecast once the release begins and as it progresses. About a day after the flood starts, the National Weather Service might update the forecast.
Update 1:20 p.m. Tuesday:
The 2026 Juneau Glacial Lake Outburst Flood Joint Information Center will hold a press briefing at 3 p.m. Tune in above, or listen on KTOO 104.3 FM and 91.7 FM.
Presenters include:
- Aaron Jacobs – Senior Service Hydrologist, National Weather Service
- Brigadier General Joseph “Clete” Goetz – Commanding General, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Pacific Ocean Division
- 2026 Juneau GLOF Unified Command: Sabrina Grubitz (Tlingit & Haida), Ryan O’Shaughnessy (City and Borough of Juneau), Captain Ginny Nadolny (USCG Sector Southeast Alaska)
- Jacqueline Pata – First Vice President, Tlingit & Haida
- Katie Koester – City Manager, City and Borough of Juneau
- Travis Eckhoff, Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities, Southcoast Region
The agenda includes a short briefing from the National Weather Service, an overview of agency response and preparedness actions to the Glacial Lake Outburst Flood and more about what residents can expect from coordinating agencies as the river begins to rise.
Updated 10:44 a.m. Tuesday:
Aaron Jacobs, the senior service hydrologist at the National Weather Service in Juneau, said the initial forecast is a 16.1 to 16.55 foot flood on the Mendenhall Lake gage, or between 45,000 and 47,500 cubic feet per second of water flowing down the river.
“The event hasn’t started yet,” Jacobs said. “We could see some minor fluctuations throughout the week that could adjust that range by a couple tenths of a foot.”
That initial forecast is a bit lower than the record-breaking 16.65 foot flood last year, which peaked at 48,873 cfs.
Jacobs said to check the Suicide Basin monitoring page for an updated forecast once the release begins and as it progresses. About a day after the flood starts, the National Weather Service might update the forecast.
Once the flood begins, the Red Cross will set up an emergency shelter at Floyd Dryden Middle School.
Read the full story here.
Updated 10 a.m. Tuesday:
Suicide Basin is currently full and expected to release within 1-6 days. Residents in the inundation area should finalize last-minute preparations, confirm evacuation plans and prepare a go-bag.
The City and Borough of Juneau issued an emergency text alert at 8:39 a.m. this morning notifying Juneau residents that the basin is full.
In the city’s “ready, set, go” structure, the current risk is at “set.” See more information from CBJ here.
Another alert will be issued as soon as it begins to release.
Find the latest Suicide Basin forecast from NOAA here.
See if you live in the evacuation advisory zone here
KTOO’s Alix Soliman, Lisa Phu and Brian Venua contributed.
