Weather

Smoke from the record wildfire season in California and the Pacific Northwest has been visible all over the northern half of the Lower 48.

Rainy summers like 2020 can cause flooding and mudslides and can harm people’s mental health. But the rain does have benefits.

The 150-foot vessel belongs to Northline Seafoods and is worth $7 million. It was beached near Ekuk, a fishing community south of Dillingham.

Ketchikan had 68 days with measurable rainfall, for a total of 47 inches — both records. Sitka set a rainy-day record with 70 days, while Petersburg had a record 31.6 inches. Downtown Juneau saw more rain than it’s seen in 59 years, with 34 inches.

“It appears this was the strongest storm to affect Alaska during the month of August on record,” said Rick Thoman, who works for the Alaska Center for Climate Assessment and Policy.

This is at least the third time that both the lake and river flooded this summer. Heavy rains drove up lake levels to 10.2 feet on August 10.

An areawide flood watch from the National Weather Service was canceled early Monday morning, but a flood advisory remains in effect until noon for the Mendenhall Lake and River.

Water is draining under the glacier and will cause the Mendenhall Lake and River to rise over the next 24 hours, cresting Friday evening.

By Wednesday, air quality monitors in Anchorage had not raised concern about fine particulate matter, though PM2.5 levels had worsened slightly over the past few days.

It was the second-wettest June ever with 7.3 inches of rain. There were also 25 days in June in which measurable amounts of rain fell at the Juneau airport.