Alaska Readies for Major Storm

Western Alaska residents braced for an unusual Bering Sea storm headed toward the coast, packing hurricane-force winds and churning giant waves.

The storm was lashing parts of the shoreline with winds in excess of 80 mph late Tuesday, said Neil Murakami, a National Weather Service forecaster in Anchorage. Tiny coastal communities were at particular risk for damage from wind and expected flooding.

The storm caused a dramatic rise in sea levels, an upsurge of more than 3 feet, National Weather Service meteorologist Stephen Kearney in Fairbanks said. Officials have said the water is expected to rise another 7 feet overnight. Reports of heavy flooding are expected Wednesday morning, Kearney said.

State officials warned residents in harm's way to secure home heating fuel tanks in case sea water flooded into communities. Making communities more vulnerable than in past years is the lack of shore-fast sea ice, said Jeff Osinsky, the Weather Service's regional warning coordinator. "The presence of sea ice can sometimes act to protect coastal areas," he said.

Wind and waves started picking up by late morning, said Scott Johnson, 28, a Nome banker, prompting some people to evacuate inland to stay with friends or family in case predictions for a big ocean wave surge prove to be true.

"The waves are starting to go up against our seawall," he said from his second-story apartment that sits on the ocean.

Businesses are closing early and residents need to take every precaution.