Destruction Strikes Alaskan Villages as Typhoon Remnants Cause Devastation

Wed Oct 15 2025 15:22:57 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

Two small Native villages in Alaska face catastrophic damage from the remnants of Typhoon Halong, with over 1,500 people displaced and communities struggling to recover from the devastating storm.

The remnants of Typhoon Halong have wreaked havoc on tiny Alaskan villages, leading to widespread destruction and the displacement of over 1,500 residents. Local officials report significant damage, including homes floating away, with emergency shelters set up to assist those affected. Experts emphasize the long, challenging recovery ahead as winter approaches.

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — The remnants of Typhoon Halong have led to severe rain and wind along the Alaskan coast, resulting in catastrophic damage for two indigenous villages. In response, officials are urgently seeking shelter for more than 1,500 displaced individuals.

This past weekend, the storm produced high winds and intense surf that devastated low-lying communities in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, situated nearly 500 miles from Anchorage. Tragically, at least one death has been confirmed, alongside reports of two missing individuals. Reports indicated that the Coast Guard rescued two dozen people from homes that had been dislodged and swept into the sea.

Emergency shelters have been established, but conditions remain dire, with many seeking refuge in schools, such as one shelter without functional toilets. The storm's aftermath comes closely on the heels of another storm that had previously impacted parts of western Alaska.

The two hardest-hit villages, Kipnuk, with a population of 715, and Kwigillingok, home to 380 residents, are accessible only by water or air during this time of year. According to Mark Roberts, incident commander for the state’s emergency management, It’s catastrophic in Kipnuk. Let’s not paint any other picture... It is as bad as you can think.

Wrenching Scenes of Loss

Brea Paul, a Kipnuk resident, recounted a heart-wrenching moment when she witnessed 20 homes floating away under the moonlight on Saturday night. In a text message, she described houses blinking their phone lights as if pleading for help, while rescue efforts were rendered futile. The next morning, she filmed a house submerged just below the roofline as it drifted past her home. Community meetings in the local school gym attempted to address the disaster, with residents rallying together through song amid uncertainty and sorrow.

In Kwigillingok, tragedy struck as one woman was found deceased, and the search for two missing men was called off as their home had been carried away by the storm. Though local schools provided shelter, critical facilities like restrooms remained non-functional. A state report indicated profound damage across the villages, with many homes dislodged from their foundations.

Emergency crews are scrambling to deliver essentials such as food, water, and communication equipment, but officials warn that recovery will be a long and arduous process. Winter's imminent approach leaves little time to transport rebuilding supplies.

Indigenous communities in Alaska are resilient, noted Rick Thoman, a climate specialist at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, highlighting the gravity of the situation with homes rendered uninhabitable. He attributed the severity of the storm to warming Pacific Ocean waters due to climate change.

This calamity echoes another storm, Typhoon Merbok, which caused expansive damage to western Alaska three years prior.