Damage to remote Alaska villages hammered by flooding last weekend is so extreme that many of the more than 2,000 people displaced won’t be able to return to their homes for at least 18 months, Gov.
Officials have been scrambling to airlift people from the inundated Alaska Native villages.
In a social media post Friday morning, Vice President JD Vance wrote that “President Trump & I are closely tracking the storm devastation that resulted in over 1,000 citizens being airlifted out of Alaska villages.
They’ve been staying at the Alaska Airlines Center at the University of Alaska, where the Red Cross provided evacuees with cots, blankets and hygiene supplies.
Anchorage officials and business leaders said Friday they were eager to help the evacuees.
Many of the more than 2,000 displaced people will not be able to return to their homes for at least 18 months due to the severe damage caused by last weekend’s flooding in remote Alaskan villages, GOV. In an appeal to the White House for a major disaster declaration, Mike Dunleavy stated.
According to Dunleavy, an initial assessment in Kipnuk, one of the most affected villages, revealed that 121 homes, or 90% of the total, had been destroyed. A little over one-third of the houses in Kwigillingok, where three dozen homes floated away, are uninhabitable.
“A surge of high surf entered the low-lying area as the remnants of Typhoon Halong hit the area with the intensity of a Category 2 hurricane,” Dunleavy said. Rescue workers pulled dozens of people from their homes as they floated away, one person was killed, and two are still unaccounted for.
Authorities have been rushing to evacuate residents of the flooded Alaska Native villages by air. In addition to being evacuated by military aircraft to Anchorage, the largest city in the state, over 2,000 people have sought refuge in larger communities in southwest Alaska or in schools in their villages.
Up to 1,600 evacuees are expected to arrive, according to Anchorage officials on Friday. Approximately 575 have been airlifted to the city by the Alaska National Guard thus far, and are lodging at a convention center or sports arena. On Friday and Saturday, more flights were anticipated.
They are trying to figure out how to get people out of shelters and into hotels and other short-term lodgings, followed by longer-term housing.
“Many survivors will probably not be able to return to their communities this winter due to the time, space, distance, geography, and weather in the affected areas,” Dunleavy stated. “Rapid repairs are being prioritized by agencies.”. However, given America’s harshest climate, it is likely that some damaged communities will not be able to support winter occupancy. S. . the Arctic. “.”.
Search and rescue operations, damage assessments, environmental response, and evacuation support have already received assistance from the federal government. If President Trump declares a major disaster, federal assistance programs for people and public infrastructure, including funding for emergency and ongoing work, may be made available.
Vice President JD Vance posted on social media Friday morning, saying, “President Trump and I are closely monitoring the damage caused by the storm, which led to the evacuation of more than 1,000 residents from Alaskan villages. “Your federal government is working closely with you, Alaskans, and our prayers are with you,” Dunleavy and Sen. Dan Sullivan “to obtain the assistance you require.”. “.
Alaska’s congressional delegation, consisting of three members, wrote to President Trump on Friday, requesting expeditious approval.
Governor of Texas. Greg Abbott announced on Friday night that he had sent resources and “emergency management personnel” to Alaska after the state’s Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management requested help.
The staff will “assist the State of Alaska’s Emergency Operations Center and field operations in a variety of roles, including voluntary agency coordination as well as volunteer and donations management,” according to a news release distributed by Abbott’s office.
Communities in a sparsely populated area off the state’s main road system, which can only be reached by air or water at this time of year, were severely damaged by the storm surge. There are usually only a few hundred people living in the villages, and they mostly hunt and fish for their food. Moving to one of the state’s large cities will result in a very different way of life.
Following the flooding at his home, Alexie Stone of Kipnuk, along with his siblings, kids, and mother, flew into Anchorage in a military jet. They have been lodging at the University of Alaska’s Alaska Airlines Center, where the Red Cross has given evacuees blankets, cots, and personal hygiene items.
After working in a grocery store in Bethel, he believes he might try to find a job there, at least for the near future.
According to Stone, “it’s going to be, try to look for a place and find a job,” on Friday. We’re moving to Anchorage to start over. “,”.
Officials and business leaders in Anchorage expressed their eagerness to assist the evacuees on Friday.
At an Anchorage Assembly meeting, Mayor Suzanne LaFrance stated, “Our neighbors in western Alaska have experienced tremendous loss, devastation, and grief.”. “Here in Anchorage, we will make every effort to greet and support our neighbors during these trying times. “.
Later on Friday, LaFrance issued an emergency proclamation “to assist the state’s ongoing emergency response to Typhoon Halong in Western Alaska, which caused historic flooding that caused hundreds of our fellow Alaskans to lose their homes and destroyed a significant amount of property.”. “.
State Rep. Toksook Bay, an island northwest of Kipnuk, is home to Nellie Unangiq Jimmie, who told the assembly how she and her daughter and niece braved the storm’s 100 mph winds.
“We were forced to sit in our house and wait to see if our house would collapse or if our windows would be broken by falling debris,” she said.
Some weren’t as lucky, but it didn’t. She expressed gratitude to Anchorage for taking in the evacuees.
Jimmie remarked, “You are demonstrating to my constituents, my people, and my relatives that this is still Alaska land and that they are surrounded by families, even though they live far away.”.
