Public Safety

Local officials are continuing to search for two people missing from a Western Alaska village after remnants of Typhoon Halong left one dead and much of the region devastated by high winds and flooding.

However, large-scale search and rescue efforts are largely on hold pending new information.

The U.S. Coast Guard, Alaska State Troopers and Alaska National Guard said they were unable to locate a floating house and its occupants before they suspended their active search Monday evening.

The search covered dozens of square miles around the village of Kwigillingok using helicopters, planes, drones and more, according to Coast Guard Capt. Christopher Culpepper.

“Suspending an active search is always a tough decision to make, and it is especially difficult in this situation where the Kwigillingok community is already suffering so much,” he said.

Alaska State Troopers identified the missing people as 71-year-old Vernon Pavil and 41-year-old Chester Kashatok and said they had located the body of 67-year-old Ella Mae Kashatok. All three were residents of the hard-hit village of Kwigillingok and members of the same family.

Brea Paul, a court administrator in Kwigillingok, said in an interview that she knew the family well. She saw their house floating off its foundation as floodwaters rose on Sunday.

“They were the most kindest people I’ve ever met. They didn’t have much, but they always, always had a positive mindset and they always greeted anyone — they welcomed everyone to their home,” Paul said. “They deserve to be searched (for). Their names deserve to be heard.”

Village public safety officers with the Association of Village Council Presidents and volunteers are continuing to look for the two men, the organization said in a post on social media.

“Teams continue operations with drag bars, sonar equipment, and coordinated volunteer efforts,” the group said. “Our commitment to this mission is unwavering: no one is giving up.”

All are accounted for in Kipnuk, another community that saw widespread devastation, troopers said.

Hundreds of people remain sheltered in village schools scattered throughout the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. State officials say they’re rushing aid to the region and working to evacuate residents of Kipnuk and Kwigillingok.

KYUK’s Evan Erickson contributed reporting.

A mass evacuation is underway for Kipnuk and Kwigillingok, where a thousand people were sheltering in schools after Sunday’s huge storm.

Reached by phone Wednesday afternoon, Kipnuk tribal administrator Buggy Carl said he was focused on one thing.

“Right now, just trying to convince everybody to go before the next storm hits,” he said.

Shelter conditions in the two communities were rough. The toilets weren’t working at the Kwigillingok school. Power and telecommunications were spotty in Kipnuk, and fuel to heat the school was running low. Nearly all the homes in both towns were damaged. It’s unsafe to stay, Carl said. Still, some people are reluctant to leave.

“I know their mindset, that their heart is here,” he said. “They don’t know anywhere else to go.”

It’s more than just familiar. Carl said it’s where they know how to make a living as subsistence hunters and harvesters. Carl said he heard some say they were afraid to go somewhere else.

“And then there is a possible thought that we will be able to come back, for those who want to come back, and still continue to help clean up,” he said.

Carl said houses that were pushed off their foundations are scattered across Kipnuk. He was in a house with 14 family members during the storm, six of them children, when the four-bedroom house started drifting around 2 a.m. At one point he yelled at his family to brace when it looked like they were going to strike another house. He estimates his home traveled half a mile before it came to rest.

“We only floated down a few minutes. It felt like hours, because the time was really slow,” he said. “My adrenaline was like out of the roof.”

Kwigillingok tribal court administrator Brea Paul said a substantial portion of her town has already been flown to Bethel.

“We’re going to be one of the last families to leave so we can let the ones with no homes go first. But as of right now, we don’t know where we’re gonna go. We don’t know what to do,” she said.

The first evacuees were taken to the Bethel Armory, but that shelter quickly filled.

On Wednesday afternoon, evacuees were seen boarding a C-17 transport plane at the Alaska Army National Guard hangar in Bethel.

A Guard spokesperson said that 300 people from both Kipnuk and Kwigillingok were being evacuated to Anchorage.

The Alaska National Guard said the evacuees were being flown to Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, where agencies will be available to direct them to shelter, food and medical care.

Juneau’s known for its beautiful mountains and seemingly endless trails. They’re just some of the many draws that bring 1.7 million cruise ship passengers to Alaska’s capital city each summer. 

But this year, at least five people died in the backcountry around Juneau, including tourists, a seasonal worker, a local and a researcher. Two people died in separate incidents on Mount Roberts, two others on popular hiking trails and one on top of Mendenhall Glacier. 

The data isn’t readily available to say how unusual this summer was, but some of the deaths came after extensive search and rescue.  

“Deaths on the mountains in Juneau are not uncommon. However, we saw a lot more this year,” said Andrew Pantiskas, the EMS chief for Capital City Fire/Rescue. 

But he said there isn’t anything he could point to about this summer that made it different than others. Pantiskas said there are ways that people can prepare themselves for an emergency situation in the backcountry.  

“One of the biggest things that we always remind people to do is have a travel plan, have a flight plan, have a trail plan — whatever you want to call it,” he said. “Have someone who’s not with you, who knows when you’re supposed to be back where you’re going, and knows your contact info.”

He listed other things hikers should do to prepare, too, like dressing for the weather, having a charged phone and a head lamp.

Pete Boyd with Juneau Mountain Rescue said it’s easy to become complacent about the dangers of being out in the mountains, especially on clear days.  

“Serious things can happen to anybody at any time,” he said. “There was no major weather. There’s nothing out of the ordinary about this year, but we’ve had five deaths.”

In September, a Texas man visiting on a cruise ship died after falling off a steep mountainside  on Mount Roberts near downtown. A man with him at the time also fell and suffered minor injuries. 

Another cruise ship passenger died from a fall on the mountain earlier this year. Both tourists died after taking the popular Goldbelt Tram to get to the top of Mount Roberts. Boyd said mountains can become much more dangerous in the dark or bad weather. 

“The biggest thing is: stay on the trails there. If you think you’re on a shortcut, it’s not a shortcut,” he said. “The number of times we’ve gone out for people where they’re like, ‘Oh, well, I thought this would be a quicker way down and it looks like a trail,’ [but] it’s a game trail, or even just a stream that leads to a cliff.”

McHugh Pierre, Goldbelt’s president and CEO, said the company has safety signs posted on trails for visitors exiting onto the mountain at the top. He said staff also warn people of the dangers as they ride the tram up the mountain and use the trails. 

“People need to respect that Alaska is the frontier,” he said. “It is on the edge of wilderness, and just because you can see a town doesn’t mean that you’re not in the wild and facing all of the challenges that that wilderness throws at you.”

He said after this summer, Goldbelt plans to increase signage and education efforts for visitor safety.

The cruise tourism season in Juneau ended this week after a nearly 200-day season.

More than a thousand people in Western Alaska are sleeping in their local school after a massive storm Sunday made their homes unlivable.

But some of the schools aren’t livable either.

In Kwigillingok, some 400 people were sheltering at the school, without functioning toilets, the Alaska Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management reported Monday.

Nearly 600 were staying at the school in Kipnuk, where the water plant wasn’t working and electricity was limited.

Mark Roberts, the state incident commander, said Tuesday they’ve begun evacuating the medically vulnerable to Bethel.

“We’re moving as fast as we can,” he said. “We know that folks are miserable.”

The storm struck two communities very hard, Kipnuk and Kwigillingok, with record-breaking storm surge and damage to nearly every home. But many more communities along the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta and farther north suffered flooding. Complicating rescue efforts, some airports are closed to fixed-wing planes, some power plants and phone systems are down and none of the communities are on a road system. Also, another storm is expected to bring high winds this week.

About 60 people have been evacuated to a shelter established at the Bethel National Guard Armory, Roberts said. For everyone else still stuck in their village school, State Troopers and National Guard are flying in supplies like water, food and satellite communications equipment while the state figures out what to do.

“We need to have places for people to go safely, where they can be warm and fed and taken care of. We’re moving quickly to have that established, but it’s taking some time,” Roberts said. “So some folks are in some really uncomfortable places. We’re doing everything we can to push in support to them, where they are.”

Bethel, he said, doesn’t have the capacity to shelter everyone who needs it, so the state is considering other places, including Anchorage and Fairbanks.

The longer-term outlook is more uncertain. Roberts says the state needs to evaluate each house in the flooded communities, in conjunction with the Association of Village Council Presidents, the Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corp. and tribes.

“If folks’ homes are viable and the water goes down, and we can get the power back on and get them proper sanitation and reestablish some of their subsistence foods, then they can stay in their homes,” he said.

Where possible, he said, crews from the National Guard and Alaska’s Organized Militia will do rapid repairs to get homes ready for winter. Other residents, he said, can register to receive state assistance and seek temporary housing outside the community.

The former Juneau Police Department officer who slammed a man to the ground during an arrest this summer will not face criminal charges.

The state’s Office of Special Prosecutions cleared former JPD Officer Brandon LeBlanc for his use of force during the arrest. The July incident, which was recorded by a witness, circulated widely online and prompted a public outcry.

The man arrested during the incident, whose family has publicly identified him as Christopher Williams, Jr., appeared to lie unconscious for the remainder of the video. He was later medevaced out of town. 

Tuesday’s statement from the Office of Special Prosecutions says after a review of the evidence and an independent investigation conducted by the Alaska State Troopers’ Alaska Bureau of Investigation, the office determined “it would not criminally charge Officer LeBlanc for the incident.”

Following the July incident, Leblanc was placed on paid administrative leave. He later resigned from his position just a day before JPD released the body-worn camera footage of the arrest. 

In a legal summary of the incident from Alaska Attorney General Stephen Cox, the office chastised the city for releasing the footage before the investigation was complete, saying it “indicates a lack of serious intent to allow for an independent review of the potential criminal charges.” 

The office urged the city to reconsider its policy mandating that the Juneau Police Department release body-worn camera footage no more than 30 days after an incident. 

In the letter, it stated that LeBlanc said he feared for his own safety during the incident and that he had been taught the “takedown maneuver” as part of training prior to his time in Alaska. He also told investigators that he thought he had learned a variation during a Department of Public Safety recertification training in 2024. But OSP says the technique was not taught during the training he attended.

Earlier this month, Juneau Police Chief Derek Bos said the department is taking action to reform its policies after conducting an internal investigation of the incident. He defended the department’s hiring of LeBlanc during a presentation to the Juneau Assembly in late September, saying he firmly believes that LeBlanc is “a good officer who made a very bad mistake.” 

A man previously sued LeBlanc for excessive force and battery while he served as an officer in Louisiana. A jury found LeBlanc not guilty.

Community groups and businesses across the state are coordinating relief efforts after the remnants of Typhoon Halong brought widespread devastation to Western Alaska.

The storm has killed one person, left two missing, displaced hundreds and destroyed or damaged dozens of homes, especially in the hardest-hit communities of Kipnuk and Kwigillingok.

Here’s how you can help.

Financial support: The Western Alaska Disaster Relief Fund

The Alaska Community Foundation, an Anchorage-based nonprofit, has partnered with organizations serving people throughout the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta region, Norton Sound and the Northwest Arctic to funnel financial donations to people affected by the storm.

The organization is accepting donations at its website.

“The thing that’s unique about this fund is that we have partnered with local and regional organizations to make sure that the money goes to the areas that it’s needed most,” the Alaska Community Foundation’s Ashley Ellingson said in an interview. “Since we are not on the ground, we rely on those partnerships to make sure that the gifts and donations are the most impactful.”

The Alaska Community Foundation is partnering with the Alaska Federation of Natives, the Association of Village Council Presidents, the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, Yukon Kuskokwim Health Corp., Kawerak, Inc. Maniilaq Association and a number of other local, regional and statewide groups.

The foundation embarked on a similar effort in the wake of 2022’s Typhoon Merbok. As of 1 p.m. Tuesday, the fund had raised more than $300,000 from 3,550 donors, Ellingson said.

Cash donations are a better option than goods, since storing and transporting items can present challenges of their own, said Jenni Ragland, chair of Alaska Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster.

“While it may seem impersonal, cash really is the best opportunity to help meet those immediate needs that are coming our way,” she said at a news conference Tuesday. “It provides flexibility for us to purchase exactly what’s needed, to procure those items quickly and to get them into the hands of disaster survivors.”

Other donations

A variety of organizations, though, are taking goods to distribute to survivors or contributing in other ways. Organizers request that donations include new and unused items only, and that the donations be limited to water, diapers, wipes, formula, non-perishable food, bedding, toilet paper, hand sanitizer, portable phone chargers and flashlights.

• • The Alaska Federation of Natives says it’s gathering supplies Friday, Oct. 17, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the Dena’ina Center’s Room 6, on the second floor. Donations will also be accepted Saturday, Oct. 18, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
  • The Alaska Native Heritage Center is holding a benefit concert at Williwaw Social, 609 F St. in Anchorage, on Saturday, Oct. 18 from 6 to 10 p.m. Tickets are on sale online, and the group says it’s donating 25% of proceeds to relief efforts.
  • Alaska Children’s Urgent Care, at 751 East 36th Ave. in Anchorage, says it is taking children’s items, such as diapers, wipes, pediatric care supplies, socks, shoes and warm clothing for children of all sizes. Donations will be accepted 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Friday, Oct. 17.
  • Susitna Energy Solutions says it is collecting supplies at its office at 1432 Ingra St. in Anchorage from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.
  • Alaska Discount Outfitters is offering a 10% discount to customers that bring donations to its location at 3401 Commercial Drive in Anchorage. Donations will be accepted Wednesday through Friday from noon to 7 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
  • GCI says it is accepting donations at its C Street, Dimond Center, Muldoon and Abbott retail locations in Anchorage, as well as in Wasilla and Fairbanks.
  • The Fairbanks nonprofit Straw for Dogs is fundraising to provide doghouses and straw for families in the region.
  • The Association of Village Council Presidents is requesting that donations be dropped off at the Bethel Search and Rescue building at 499 State Highway in Bethel.
  • The Yute Commuter Service dispatch office in Soldotna is accepting donations through Saturday night at 627 Funny River Road at the local airport.

 

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect that Lynden Air Cargo is no longer asking that donations not be brought to Anchorage airport cargo terminals, instead directing donations to GCI retail stores and the AFN convention.

If you are organizing a resource that we missed, please email news@alaskapublic.org