How on Earth does a typhoon hit Alaska?
- Ric Kearbey
- Oct 16
- 3 min read
If you ever thought typhoons were a strictly tropical, flip-flops-and-coconut-trees kind of problem, Alaska just checked in with a reality check. Yep, a typhoon can hit Alaska.
Over the weekend, the remnants of Typhoon Halong slammed into western Alaska with hurricane-force gusts, a record storm surge, and a heartbreaking human toll. And yes, you read that right, a typhoon just turned the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta into ground zero for one of the state’s worst modern weather disasters.
Let’s break it down, Weather Nerdy style.
How a typhoon is able to hit Alaska
Typhoons are born in the warm, toasty Pacific, but sometimes, when their tropical life ends, they don’t just fizzle. They transform.
Here’s the trick:
As a typhoon moves north, it loses its tropical structure and becomes what meteorologists call an extratropical cyclone (think of it as a storm in new clothes).
These systems can merge with the jet stream, pick up speed, and deliver serious wind and surge far from the tropics.
Alaska’s Bering Sea acts like a funnel, pushing that storm energy straight toward coastal communities that have little protection from massive surges.
In this case, Halong hit the meteorological gas pedal, slamming the coast with winds gusting up to 107 mph and a wall of water more than 6 feet above the highest normal tide line. Some places saw water nearly 10 feet deep.
The human impact is devastating
Kipnuk and Kwigillingok, Yup’ik villages near the Bering Sea, took a direct hit. These communities are only reachable by plane or boat, so when the surge roared in, there was nowhere to run.
121 homes were destroyed in Kipnuk.
In Kwigillingok, entire structures floated away.
The U.S. Coast Guard rescued two dozen people from their homes.
Ella Mae Kashatok, 67, died. Two others , Chester Kashatok, 41, and Vernon Pavil, 71, are missing after their home was swept out to sea.
Thousands of people across the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta were affected. Over 1,500 residents have been displaced. What followed is one of the largest airlift operations in Alaska’s history.
Operation: Airlift Alaska
Picture this: helicopters, military aircraft, commercial flights, and emergency crews working around the clock. Hundreds of evacuees are being flown 500 miles east to Anchorage, with the first wave landing at the Alaska Airlines Center, which, for now, is acting more like a rescue hub than a sports arena.
13 emergency shelters have been set up across the region.
Food and supplies are tight in Bethel, the main staging area.
Evacuees are being processed through the National Guard armory before heading to larger shelters.
This isn’t just a response, it’s an amazing logistical rescue in one of the harshest, most remote corners of the United States.
Why these storms are hitting harder
Here’s the big picture: Alaska is warming faster than most of the lower 48. Ice that once shielded coastlines during fall storms is thinner, retreating earlier, or gone entirely. Warming ocean temperatures can also give tropical systems more energy as they move north.
That means:
Former typhoons like Halong are arriving stronger and wetter.
Storm surges hit communities that were never built for them.
Recovery is exponentially harder because these villages are so isolated.
This isn’t just a freak event, it’s part of a growing pattern scientists have been warning about.
What’s next
More storms are in the forecast. Erosion is expected to worsen in already battered communities. Federal and state aid is ramping up, but rebuilding in these locations won’t be quick or easy. For many, this disaster isn’t just about surviving a storm, it’s about the future of their village itself.
The Weather Nerdy takeaway
When someone says “typhoon,” your brain probably jumps to the Philippines or Japan. But in a warming world, these storms can travel thousands of miles, morph into different beasts, and still pack a monster punch, even in Alaska.
If there’s a headline to remember, it’s this: Alaska isn’t immune to the world’s changing climate. It’s standing on the front line.
🌀 For real-time updates, follow official alerts from the National Weather Service and the Alaska Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management. And here at Weather Nerdy, we’ll keep breaking down the “how” and “why” because weather isn’t just happening somewhere else.
Comments