The big culprit? A remnant of the tropical cyclone Merbok that currently rages over the Bering Sea, between Russia and Alaska. Meteorologists suspect that the cyclone could cause rising water, strong wind gusts (up to 145 kilometers per hour) and coastal flooding. The sea level is expected to remain high on the coastline for about ten hours, up to three meters above normal sea level. “It may be the worst storm in five decades,” meteorologist Scott Berg told the New York Times.
In addition, the preparations for the storm are not going smoothly. Alaska is a vast geographic area that is home to small communities of a hundred people or less. These communities are miles apart and difficult to reach. “Therefore, we have to wait and see before deploying the limited resources we have,” said Jeremy Zidek, a spokesman for the Interior.