Alaska Risk MAP Program Alakanuk Risk MAP Study Alakanuk was prioritized for a Risk MAP study because the community was identified as highly vulnerable to flooding and highly vulnerable for all hazards (erosion, flood, permafrost degradation) in aggregate in the 2018 Alaska Statewide Threat Assessment. Photo of Alakanuk, Source: Alaska ShoreZone Alakanuk is subject to severe storm events, flooding, river bank erosion and destabilization, and wildfires. The US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has designated Alakanuk as a high-flood hazard community, with the entire community vulnerable to the effects of flooding. Ice jams on the Yukon River frequently flood the community. Several buildings have been elevated on stilts to deal with flood inundation and a number of buildings have been relocated away from areas prone to flooding and erosion. In 1975, riverine erosion destroyed Alakanuk’s cannery after and led to the relocation of many homes in the village. In 1993, 20 feet of bank eroded in one day. In 2009, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers selected Alakanuk for a detailed erosion assessment as part of the Alaska Baseline Erosion Assessment. The assessment determined that Alakanuk was losing 61,650 square feet per year (1.42 acres) along all seven river reaches. The assessment projected that Alakanuk would lose an additional 72.18 acres of land and property totaling $722,000 in damages over a 50-year period of analysis. Risk MAP Discovery Documents Alakanuk Reports and Studies Alakanuk Websites Alakanuk In the News Contact for More Information Sally Russell Cox Division of Community and Regional Affairs Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development 550 West 7th Avenue, Suite 1650 Anchorage, AK 99501 Phone: (907) 269-4588 FAX: (907) 269-4563 Email:sally.cox@alaska.gov