Anchorage, Alaska, scrambles to house homeless amid record snowfall

A record number of people living outdoors in the state’s largest city have died this year, and 3ft of snow has filled shelters to capacity

Anchorage scrambled to come up with more temporary housing for the homeless after back-to-back snowstorms dumped more than 3ft of snow on the city in just nine days, an amount that is high even by Alaska standards.

The concern grows as temperatures are expected to plummet to single digits F by the weekend.

Four people believed to be homeless have already died this month, part of a record 49 deaths of people living outdoors in Alaska’s largest city this year, according to a count kept by the Anchorage Daily News.

The Anchorage assembly met in special session on Tuesday and approved a contract to add 50 beds to a shelter that just opened in October.

The current shelter was initially set up for 150 beds in the administration building of a former waste transfer site, the city’s answer after a mass shelter established during the pandemic in a sports arena was closed. It is part of a patchwork of shelters in old hotels, apartment buildings and social services facilities meant to house the city’s homeless population, estimated at more than 3,100 people.

The new emergency cold weather shelter was above 90% capacity, leading the assembly to unanimously approve the expansion.

Alexis Johnson, the city’s homeless director, said the city was working with the Anchorage Coalition to End Homelessness to give the new beds to those most in need.

“I appreciate the focus on our highest vulnerable populations,” said Felix Rivera, an Anchorage assembly member who chairs the housing and homeless committee.

Some questions were raised about adding beds to this facility, which is far from social service organizations.

“I would like to maintain the 200-person capacity, especially for emergency situations such as we’ve had lately with snowfall and frigid temperatures,” Johnson said.

David Rittenberg, the senior director of adult homeless services for Catholic Social Services, said getting 50 news beds lined up is welcome.

“It’s tough for people out there, shelters are full,” he said.

Catholic Social Services provides nearly 250 beds at three shelters in Anchorage. “And they’re full every single night,” he said.

Demand for beds did not really increase during the storms, Rittenberg said, but that will change. During heavy snow, people will hunker down in their tents and focus on necessities, such as staying warm and dry, he said.

But when the snow lets up, people begin to think about their next steps.

There is also added danger when temperatures drop and people attempt to stay warm. One person was killed this month when her makeshift shelter caught on fire from a heating source while she was sleeping.

When the heavy snowstorms walloped Anchorage, cars and even trucks were left stuck in unplowed streets. Schools either closed or switched to remote learning, garbage trucks stopped picking up trash, city and state offices were closed, and grocery and liquor stores saw increased traffic between storms.

With just under 38in of snow over the nine days, this is the third most snowy period that Anchorage has seen since snow data records began in 1916.

“This is really very high and unusual snow for Anchorage,” said Brian Brettschneider, a climate scientist with the National Weather Service.

Last December, 44in fell over a 12-day period, Brettschneider said. In 1996, 44in also fell over a 10-day period.

It’s also one of the highest snow totals through 13 November, but a fast start does not always translate into a heavy snow year.

The 1982-83 winter season started with 38.7in through 13 November but only finished with 71.4in in total, Brettschneider said. In 1996, the 36.6in November start fizzled to 69in total for the season.

“Everyone wants to say, ‘Oh my gosh, we got so much snow, this is going to be an epic snow winter,’” Brettschneider said. “It just doesn’t always work out like that.”

Even with the snow, Alaska is not getting a break with global heating, he said.

“Every day it snowed was a warmer-than-normal day in Anchorage,” he said. “We’re threading the needle here of warming temperatures and increased snowfall.”

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