By SUZANNE DOWNING
With legislators starting to pack their bags for Juneau and a legislative session that begins in 15 days, the snow crisis in Juneau is intensifying, with commercial buildings now at risk of structural failure and a citywide scramble underway to remove millions of pounds of snow before forecasted rain turns a bad situation into a catastrophe. Some legislators and staffers will be arriving within a few days and may be faced with difficulties that go far beyond the state budget — just finding a place to stay may be tricky.
Large retail roofs and apartment building roofs are an immediate concern. Crews flown in from Anchorage — about 20 to 25 workers — are shoveling the flat roof at the Fred Meyer in Juneau. The effort is expected to take another 10 to 15 days if conditions hold. So far, roughly 240,000 pounds of snow have been removed from the building, while estimates put the total load at more than 3 million pounds. Snow continues to fall, and compaction is increasing the weight by the day.
Last week, the canopy over the Fred Meyer gas station partially collapsed under the load, heightening concerns for others with similar structures. With three to four feet of snow sitting on many roofs—and the bottom 18 inches compacted—any rainfall would dramatically increase weight and stress. Forecasters are calling for rain, and as much as 13 inches of new snow could fall in a single day before that happens.
Other major retailers are struggling to find help. Home Depot and Costco are among the buildings causing the greatest concern, yet contractors are scarce. The Nugget Mall and Mendenhall Mall have already closed due to snow load concerns, further signaling how precarious the situation has become.
Across Juneau, every available dump truck and large piece of equipment is in constant use. Operators are working 14-hour days, moving directly from one emergency job to the next. Even so, there is more snow than crews can handle, and the city is running out of places to put it.
Snow disposal options are narrowing. Bickell’s Pond had been taking up to 1,000 truckloads a day until equipment failures forced a halt. Snow is now being hauled to a site near Montana Creek, while the city is also trucking snow to a parking lot at the Mendenhall Glacier. Snow from the Auke Bay Fire Station is being hauled to the glacier site, a round trip that can take about 45 minutes per load.
Residential and commercial property owners are increasingly panicked. Condominium associations report they cannot find roof shovelers at any price. Rates for roof snow removal have surged to between 70 cents and $1 per square foot, with hourly wages for shovelers ballooning to $40–$50 an hour. It is costing $20,000 to shovel a typical apartment building roof. Contractors describe the moment as a wintertime gold rush.
The cascading impacts are reaching beyond town. The Kensington Mine is reportedly seeking a contractor to plow roughly six miles between the AdlersheimLodge area and the Echo Cove ramp so boats can transport workers. No one is available. With all heavy equipment committed elsewhere, mine operations could be paused if access cannot be restored.
The common fear, shared quietly by contractors and property managers alike, is what happens when rain arrives.
Snow rapidly gains weight when saturated, and roofs already carrying compacted loads could fail with little warning. For Juneau, the convergence of record snowfall, limited manpower, shrinking disposal sites, and looming rain has created what many are calling a perfect storm.
For background on the closures and early impacts of this storm, see The Alaska Story’s report from Saturday.
Photo: Snow that was taken off a roof in Juneau. Scott Spickler photo.
