A landslide triggered by heavy rain hit an apartment building on Gastineau Avenue at about 11 a.m. Sunday, causing damage that filled some apartments with water and debris, as officials closed off the street and evacuated some other residences due to concern about damage from further landslides along the road.
Rainfall records were set Sunday in Juneau and several other Southeast Alaska towns, according to National Weather Service Juneau. But the amounts varied widely even within communities, as in Juneau 3.82 inches were measured at the Snettisham hydroelectric power plant, 3.02 inches at the Juneau-Douglas wastewater treatment plant and 1.24 inches at Juneau International Airport.
Strasbaugh Apartments, located downtown at 231 Gastineau Avenue, was among the areas with the heaviest rainfall. While some residents said damage to their homes occurred — which officials later said wasn’t considered major — there were no initial reports of injuries.
“I just heard a bunch of rumbling at first and I thought ‘what the heck is that?’” said Virginia John-Daniels, who lives with John Hilliard in the upper corner apartment on the side of the building struck. “And I looked out and I saw all these trees going by, and I was like ‘Oh, my God, John,’” and I woke him up real quick.”
Mud and debris is seen to one side of the Strasbaugh Apartments on Gastineau Avenue after it was struck by a landslide Sunday morning. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Other residents described a similar experience.
“We just heard a big, loud rumble, and I heard a loud breaking sound, and when I opened the door I saw the mud,” said Christina Edwards, who moved into the apartment building in early May. She said while the landslide didn’t directly damage her apartment, she was unable to close the door due to the mud that spilled in after she opened it.
Capital City Fire/Rescue, in an alert issued at about 11:06 a.m., stated there were multiple mudslides on Gastineau Avenue and “crews are on scene sizing up the extent of the extent of the impact.” A statement issued by the City and Borough of Juneau at 12:30 p.m. Sunday stated three landslides on the street were reported.
“The first slide occurred at 11 a.m. behind 231 Gastineau Ave.,” the CBJ statement notes. “Capital City Fire/Rescue responded and evacuated several individuals. While on scene, two additional slides and additional evacuations occurred in the same general location. No injuries have been reported at this time. The Red Cross is assisting evacuees.”
No utility outages were reported and public works officials worked to clear street drains, according to CBJ. High river levels were reported throughout town, with some such as Gold Creek seen spilling over their banks, but the Mendenhall River remained well below the record levels that caused widespread damage to homes last August.
Flood advisories were extended until Tuesday morning and the weather service forecast called for more heavy rain in Juneau starting Tuesday evening and continuing through Wednesday night.
CCFR, in a Facebook post at about 2:45 p.m. Sunday, stated “there are boats riding low in the (harbors) right now. We also have 3 more days of rain forecasted. If you have a boat in the water, checking bilge pumps to prevent damage or a sinking.”
The landslides occurred on the same street where three homes were damaged by a landslide that knocked down a tree and a telephone pole in September of 2022.
A car on Gastineau Avenue is partially buried by a mudslide that occurred at about 11 a.m. Sunday. (Photo by Simba Blackman)
Rafters on Sunday afternoon float past homes along the Mendenhall River that were exposed to record flooding last August, damaging or destroying many of them. Rock fill has been placed along the bank to protect against further erosion and the river remained well below last year’s flood levels. (Laurie Craig / Juneau Empire)
• Contact Mark Sabbatini at mark.sabbatini@juneauempire.com or (907) 957-2306.
