As is indicated by the photo, high tides are constant during the winter months. When the tides are accompanied by wind storms, erosion on the outside beach and creek bed roads are a problem.

"On November 10, 1938 an earthquake shook the Chignik area for 6 minutes. It was 38 degrees out nice and calm in the morning."

Direct writings from Clara Wallin’s Day Book 1938.

“It was just twenty minutes past ten when the house began shaking like everything. ….just as we went out the kitchen door, the bricks began tumbling down behind us from the brick chimney in the kitchen. After the quake was over we went into the house and what a mess! Everything was scattered all over the floor. The roof on the house lifted about an inch or more. The house was full of soot. The earthquakes came pretty often during the afternoon and we noticed the tide was coming in awfully fast. It was so high it was right over the end of the dock. You could see the old ship that was wrecked here, way out beyond the Piles here and no more then it got out it came rushing right back again. After that second tide we had three more tides, but they weren’t so bad as the first and second ones. There were five tides altogether in one day. The earthquakes were coming every half hour before midnight. After midnight they were coming every hour.”

“November 11, 1938 Pretty good weather, the quakes are still coming now and then.
November 17, 1938 There was a light earthquake at six o’clock this morning.
Friday December 16, 1938 Weather rain again as usual. But lots of Southwest, Southeast and Northwest wind. What a mix up!”

In October 1948, a flood was estimated to be 14.1 ft (local datum) based on a report of 13 inches of water on the floor of the building that in 1992 was the Chignik Bible Chapel, and an 18-inch land rise due to the 1964 earthquake. More recent floods have reached, or nearly reached, the low cord of the cannery bridges crossing the former channel of Indian Creek. The local datum used was a spike in utility pole #12 on the south side of Harold Skonberg's house, which has an elevation of 15.50 ft. A spike in the utility pole nearest the south bridge abutment on West Third Avenue has an elevation of 12.25 ft.

In January 2000 an unusual amount of snow fell across the state of Alaska and the impact was felt in Chignik.

In March on Airport Road a portion of the road was closed due to an avalanche. Houses located close to the base of the mountain were evacuated for about two weeks. About seven families and the school were affected.

Although no houses were impacted they were advised by the State not to stay in their homes in case there were more avalanche areas. School had to be held in the Community Hall for the two weeks it took the State to clean up the alvanche area due to weather.

The distance that was under avalanche was roughly estimated to be about 300 feet.

Photo By: TJ Aklin
High tide - Bridge over Indian Creek