The water crested at about 11:15 p.m. Saturday and an official flood alert was canceled at 10 a.m. Sunday, but the city has declared the incident a local emergency<\/a>, and local leaders are in discussions with state and federal disaster officials about further assistance.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t The flooding was caused by a release of water from Suicide Basin — a natural event that has occurred annually since 2011 — and the maximum level of 14.97 feet far exceeded the previous record of 11.99 feet in July of 2016. Some scientists and national media reports are speculating on whether climate change might be responsible for this year’s flood and if more such incidents are ahead, but experts said answers are still to be determined.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t “This is still a recent phenomenon,” National Weather Service meteorologist Andrew Park told the Washington Post<\/a>, adding “there’s going to be a lot of eyes on this.”<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t Barr, who has been designated the city’s media spokesperson for the flood, said the number of inquires he’s received is “more than I’ve ever taken for any disaster in the past, including COVID, and three-quarters of them are not local.”<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t Pieces of wood, concrete and other debris that washed ashore on North Douglas are piled for collection on Monday. (Clarise Larson \/ Juneau Empire)<\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t Can some condemned homes be saved?<\/strong><\/p>\n\t\t\t\t The condemned residences include two six-unit condominiums that have portions of the buildings hanging over the edge of the bank of the Mendenhall River due to massive erosion from the flooding, Barr said. There are also two single-family residences — including one with a separate apartment — that are condemned.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t “That just means they’re unsafe for habitation right now,” he said. “It doesn’t mean they can’t potentially be made safe again.”<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t Local engineers and contractors examined the condominiums Monday to assess if it’s possible to save the buildings by restoring the missing section of the riverbank, Barr said.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t “It’s my understanding of the condo association has been working with and they are seeking some emergency permitting through us, and state and federal agencies…to hopefully build back that bank and potentially save those buildings,” he said. “I will certainly emphasize ‘potentially’ is the key word there — we don’t know.”<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t Residents of some homes with exposed foundations evacuated their belongings during the weekend, saying they believe there is no realistic possibility of saving the <\/a>structures<\/a>. Barr said inspectors on Sunday prioritized those that appear to be most at risk and will first be evaluated to determine if they are salvageable.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t If repairs aren’t possible, the property owner is to a large extent responsible for the demolition or other subsequent action, Barr said<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t “When we condemn something it doesn’t mean that we demolish it,” he said. “It simply means that we that we deem it unsafe for habitation.”<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t If a property owner disagrees with the city’s assessment that a house is uninhabitable, “their best course of action is to engage with our community development staff and have a conversation with them, and where appeal processes exist they will certainly be advised,” Barr said.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t When asked what the city’s responsibility is if a condemned structure posses a possible public hazard — such as a house washing away and putting people and property downstream at risk — Barr said “that’s not something that we’ve worked our way through yet, so I don’t have a comment on that right now.”<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t The evaluation process of all the condemned and damaged properties is expected to take weeks.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t “This won’t be a quick process,” Barr said. “We’re in a long recovery phase right now.”<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t![\"Pieces](\"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/33532592_web1_FloodUpdateMonday-JUE-230809-2_1.jpg\")
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