Anchorage Homes Near Chester Creek See Flooding

Anchorage, Alaska, temperatures have been in the teens or colder for weeks but residents near a creek are dealing with a problem usually seen in spring.

The Anchorage Daily News reports a handful of residents are reporting flooding from Chester Creek.

City hydrologist Jeff Urbanus says the cold snap caused water to freeze at the bottom of the creek and all the way to the surface. The phenomenon is called “anchor ice.”

Water that’s still flowing oozed out of the creek banks and into basements and crawl spaces of homes near Valley of the Moon Park.

Urbanus says warmer weather will cure the long-term problem by breaking the creek ice and allowing the surface of the creek to freeze over.