Official Susitna breakup date ties record

The Susitna River has tied the earliest official breakup day on record.

According to the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration’s Alaska Pacific River Forecast Center, the Susitna River at Sunshine broke up on Wednesday, April 17^th.  In other areas of the Northern Valley, there was significant open water on the Susitna more than a week earlier.

That ties the previous record of 2016’s breakup when accounting for the leap year.  The Skwentna River set a new record this year, with an official breakup date of April 12^th.  The previous record was also on April 12^th, which occurred in 2016.  Because 2016 was a leap year, however, it is counted as being one day later.

When determining breakup in a warm spring, the Alaska Pacific River Forecast Center relies largely on ground-level observations from people living in local communities, including photographs and social media posts.