On the evening of Wednesday, May 12, 2021 while residents of Buckland, Alaska were cooking dinner and settling in for the night, the river began to rapidly rise. Within a matter of minutes, water and ice rushed over the banks and into the community. An ice jam had formed roughly a half-mile downstream from the village, causing severe flooding that damaged homes, roads, and personal property. Even with funding from the state, the community was in need of immediate financial assistance to purchase gravel to complete repairs and ensure the health and safety of residents.

A generous donation from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to the Healthy Alaska Natives Foundation’s Climate Impact Response Fund supported a $10,000 grant to Buckland to help purchase gravel to repair homes and roads. The Climate Impact Response Fund supports Alaska Native people in rural communities during the times when they need it the most.