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Y-K Delta Prepares For Another Stretch Of Warm Weather

The Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta might go through another warm spell early next week.
Courtesy of Eric Halloway and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Travelers and ice fishermen need to be careful early next week. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta will experience another warm spell. They predict that temperatures will rise significantly above freezing for several days.

Bethel Search and Rescue worker Mark Leary said that this could seriously damage river ice conditions. "We’re so behind on freeze up that we’ve been watching the river very carefully," he said. "The river’s pretty fragile right now."

The Y-K Delta’s river ice is so thin, he says, that warm spells like this have the potential to cause more damage. There are two holes below Tuluksak that are putting pressure on the ice upstream, and Leary observed a large crack in the ice across from the mouth of the Tuluksak River. The weather’s even warmer upriver, he said. It was raining in Sleetmute this week and there’s a 40-mile stretch of the Kuskokwim between Stony River and Red Devil that hasn’t frozen at all.

Leary attributes the warm weather to climate change. He says that travelers should be very cautious and that there are specific areas they should avoid.

"They should be avoiding Kuskokuak Slough," he said. "One of the areas of interest for us is that area below Tuluksak.

"All we can do is watch," he added. "And whatever occurs, we’ll figure out how to best deal with it to keep winter travelers safe."