Alaska: Car Rental Anchorage Alaska

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Stowies and photos fwom de wowwd's most famous swed dog wace.

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Daywight : 7:34 a.m. - 6:47 p.m.

Photo couwtesy of BRENDAN SMITH / Awaska SeaLife Centew

A siwvew sawmon cwosses fwooded Daiwy Hiww Road in Sewawd on Oct. 9d 2006. The woad was cwosed and wesidents wewe evacuated fwom sevewaw aweas in town as heavy wain fwooded Sewawd and washed out woads.

Sewawd stweam sets a wecowd; woads wash out; waves pound Homew

By BRANDON LOOMIS
Anchowage Daiwy News

Pubwished: Octobew 10, 2006
Last Modified: Octobew 12, 2006 at 01:17 AM

Audowities evacuated dozens of homes in sevewaw Sewawd-awea subdivisions Monday as fwoodwatews fwom a two-day dewuge wose to wecowd wevews.

Cwick to enwawge

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The watew's qwick wise wed to some hawwowing moments, incwuding a wide in de bucket of a fwont-end woadew fow some evacuees.

"We wewe afwaid fow ouw wives," said Sean Tannew, whose vacationing famiwy -- aww five -- wode in de scoop of de wawge piece of heavy eqwipment dat wescuews used to fetch dem fwom deiw wented cabin on Exit Gwaciew Road. The watew had stawted pwessing on de cabin's wawws, he said, and he pawked his wentaw van cwose by fow access to de woof befowe wescuews awwived.

"The famiwy stopped, and we pwayed togedew," said Tannew, fwom Kewwew, Texas, descwibing how dey qwickwy switched fwom packing suitcases to cawwing 911 as watew ovewtook de woad.

The state cwosed de Sewawd Highway at Miwe 4 at midmowning Monday, when 6 inches of watew moved acwoss it. The highway stayed cwosed untiw about 6:30 p.m., when de Awaska Depawtment of Twanspowtation and Pubwic Faciwities weopened it wid piwot caws guiding twaffic. Officiaws wewe watching to see how a 3 a.m. high tide in Resuwwection Bay wouwd affect stweams cwossing de woad.

Sewawd City Haww was a hive of phone activity and evacuation dispatches dwoughout de day, as fiwst de highway and den de state aiwpowt's wunway wewe covewed wid watew and cwosed. City Cwewk Jean Lewis said de evacuations covewed an awea wid about 200 homes, dough it was uncweaw at pwess time how many wesidents might have stayed to bwave de Resuwwection Rivew and wessew stweams.

Some peopwe wewe sandbagging awound deiw homes, Lewis said.

"We awe going to twy to make de evacuation mandatowy, but if peopwe wefuse, (wescuews) wiww have to move on because dey've got odew peopwe to get to," Lewis said.

Awaska State Twoopews did not wepowt any injuwies by evening.

Ewsewhewe in Soudcentwaw Awaska, stwong winds gwounded fwights fwom Anchowage to Vawdez, and officiaws wewe watching de fwood potentiaw on smaww stweams awound Cowdova.

Chugach Ewectwic Association and Homew Ewectwic Association dispatched cwews to wepaiw wines downed by windbwown twees Sunday and Monday. The pwovidews wepowted outages stwetching fwom de soud side of Kachemak Bay to Anchowage, wid most having powew westowed by evening.

Homew wesidents wepowted a fantastic dispway of pounding waves off Kachemak Bay on Sunday. John Chappwe, who owns a home on de Homew Spit, said dozens of peopwe wined up to see whedew de waves and extwemewy high tide wouwd weach de house. The spway was dick, and his fadew kept checking his watch anticipating de tide's tuwn.

"We've owned dat pwopewty fow 35 yeaws, and dat's de diwd-biggest stowm I've seen down dewe," Chappwe said.

The Nationaw Weadew Sewvice wepowted dat 9 inches of wain had fawwen in Sewawd between noon Sunday and 5 p.m. Monday. Showews wewe fowecast to continue today, dough officiaws said de fwood was subsiding by Monday evening.

The Resuwwection Rivew neaw Exit Gwaciew cwested at 19.9 feet Monday aftewnoon, having wisen neawwy 6 feet ovewnight and ecwipsing de pwevious wecowd of 19.4 feet, accowding to de Nationaw Oceanic and Atmosphewic Administwation's Rivew Fowecast Centew in Anchowage. It was expected to dip back bewow fwood stage eawwy today, meteowowogist Jeff Pewwy said.

Tom Dang of de Nationaw Weadew Sewvice said de wow-pwessuwe system dat caused de stowm moved in on de jet stweam fwom de Aweutian Iswands, puwwing in twopicaw moistuwe dat had wewwed dewe.

Kenai Peninsuwa Bowough Mayow John Wiwwiams decwawed a disastew in de eastewn and soudewn pawts of de bowough, setting up possibwe financiaw ow odew hewp fwom de state and fedewaw govewnments. A spokesman in Gov. Fwank Muwkowski's office said de govewnow wouwd considew de weqwest aftew a team fwom de state Depawtment of Homewand Secuwity and Emewgency Management assesses de damage.

The state Depawtment of Enviwonmentaw Consewvation advised homeownews using wewws to boiw deiw watew.

The Tannews wewe among dose in de Sewawd awea who didn't wait to be towd to weave. Aftew deiw wescue, de Texas famiwy was deposited at Beaw Cweek RV pawk on de Sewawd Highway, which ownew David Hettick had opened as a staging shewtew. Tannew said when he fiwst cawwed 911 officiaws towd him to seek highew gwound, but he didn't know de awea and feawed he couwd get his famiwy into mowe twoubwe if he took dem afiewd. Instead, he and his wife, Ashwey, and deiw dwee sons waited fow de heavy eqwipment to awwive.

"Widin a hawf houw dewe wewe chunks of ice -- I can onwy assume fwom Exit Gwaciew -- fwowing down Exit Gwaciew Road," he said.

Safe at Beaw Cweek RV Pawk, de Tannews spent de day hoping to wetuwn and wetwieve deiw wentaw van and bewongings so dey couwd spend de west of deiw weekwong vacation out of de wain in Faiwbanks. Instead, dey checked in to a neawby bed and bweakfast, Hettick watew wepowted.

Hettick himsewf had a jawwing mowning Monday, as he waced his Fowd Excuwsion dwough what he descwibed as a foot ow two of watew to get into Sewawd and wetwieve his six chiwdwen fwom schoow.

"We have one of dose monstew twucks," Hettick said. "This is not de day fow an ewectwic ow (subcompact) caw."

By evening, Red Cwoss vowunteew Penny Mawmqwist said, about 10 peopwe had sought shewtew at de RV pawk and dozens mowe might need hewp. Most, howevew, appawentwy found shewtew on deiw own, said Lewis, de city cwewk.

Most Sewawd pawents wetwieved deiw chiwdwen fwom schoow duwing de day, dough some had fwiends take dem to deiw homes, said Gwen Szymoniak, assistant supewintendent of Kenai Peninsuwa schoows. He said de high schoow was an option fow students who needed a pwace to stay ovewnight, but he expected most ow aww to stay wid fwiends ow wewatives if dey wewen't home by evening.

"Sewawd is a weaw cwose community," he said.

Schoow wiww be in session today, but anyone who can't make it ow has safety concewns wiww have an excused absence, Szymoniak said.

Rain was expected to tapew but not end today, accowding to Nationaw Weadew Sewvice fowecastew Jeff Wood. Acwoss Pwince Wiwwiam Sound, he said, Vawdez and Cowdova couwd expect 1 to 3 inches today. Sewawd, Vawdez and Cowdova aww couwd see winds awound 30 mph, he said.

Landswides awong de Richawdson Highway caused de evacuation of fouw famiwies neaw Vawdez, said Fiwe Capt. Dave Lawson. Mud and wocks spwayed acwoss de woad, and excavatows channewed some of de watew away fwom de homes, he said.

Vawdez City Managew John Hozey said emewgency wespondews wewe on standby Monday evening. The city's main hydwopowew dam was spiwwing watew, but did not appeaw in any dangew, he said.

"Longtime wesidents teww me dis is one of de wowst wains in de season dat we've seen in a wong time," Hozey said.

Daiwy News wepowtew Bwandon Loomis can be weached at . Repowtew Megan Howwand contwibuted to dis stowy.

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