Trees fell on a home near 3-mile Zimovia Highway in Wrangell.
High winds downed trees and caused power outages and structural damage throughout Wrangell early Tuesday morning.
Light and Power Superintendent Clay Hammer said power in downtown Wrangell went out first, followed by all of Zimovia Highway and Shoemaker Loop Road.
Hammer said trees knocked out some power lines, and at least one outage was likely caused by debris. He said power is back on throughout Wrangell, with the exception of Nugget Trailer Court 3 miles south of town.
At least two homes near 3-mile Zimovia Highway were hit by fallen trees. Another home near City Park had a large section of its roof torn off, and a structure collapsed at the Marine Service Center.
A structure at the Marine Service Center collapsed due to high winds.
National Weather Service forecaster David Levin said gusts at the Wrangell airport reached 53 miles per hour. But he said that area is relatively sheltered from the wind, so it’s likely other parts of the island were hit with gusts up to 70 miles per hour.
Levin said gusts to 70 miles per hour were recorded throughout the central and southern panhandle, resulting in power outages, roof damage and tree damage in several communities in the region. He said the worst is probably over for Wrangell, and the weather should calm down today.
Trees also blocked Zimovia Highway in two areas about 8 miles south of town Tuesday morning, but those have been cleared.
At Heritage Harbor, a large tree fell across the parking lot and blocked access to the drive-down ramp. Trash cans, dumpsters and debris were also scattered around town Tuesday morning.
Ketchikan is running on diesel power after trees knocked down the connection to the Swan Lake hydropower plant. The Inter-Island ferry run was canceled today because of downed power lines on Prince of Wales Island.
