Mendenhall River runs through Juneau, Alaska. The river rose to a record level, but temporary barriers largely kept major flooding at bay.

New sandbag-style barriers installed along a river in Alaska's capital city held back record levels of flooding and prevented widespread damage after an ice dam at the nearby Mendenhall Glacier released a massive amount of rainwater and snowmelt downstream,

Each summer in the mountains above Juneau, Alaska, meltwater from the massive Mendenhall Glacier flows into mountain lakes and into the Mendenhall River, which runs through town. Since 2011, scientists and local officials have kept a close eye on one lake in particular: Suicide Basin,