Alaska officials say landslide danger remains after storm, 2 people still missing

Officials in southeast Alaska have repeated warnings about possible landslide danger in the community of Haines, where two people remain missing after a large slide last week.

Torrential rain across much of the region caused havoc in many communities, including Ketchikan, where emergency officials announced there was no longer a danger of dam failure.

Searchers were still trying to find two people reported missing after a massive landslide crashed into Haines last Wednesday.

The community of about 2,500 people experienced several landslides, which followed a deluge of about 25.4 centimetres of rain over two days.

The largest slide was estimated at about 183 metres wide and took out four homes while pushing debris to the water line. Authorities initially said six people were missing, but revised the count Thursday when four people were found safe.

Kindergarten teacher among those missing

David Simmons and Jenae Larson were those identified as still missing.

Simmons, newly hired to lead the city's economic development corporation, lives in one of the four destroyed homes.

Larson, a recent University of Idaho graduate, is in her first year as a kindergarten teacher in her native Haines and rents an apartment above Simmons' garage.

'It's really hard to see everyone in town walking around looking so sad'

Yukon veterinarian Dr. Michelle Oakley has been living in Haines, where her daughter goes to school, since September and described the town's current state as "awful.

"It's just been non-stop rain and snow and ... it's really hard to see everyone in town walking around looking so sad," she told CBC on Monday. 

"I mean, the roads are destroyed, it's unbelievable how many roads are cracked and sunk and washed out. And, you know, all these neighbourhoods are now under evacuation."

Oakley has been offering free veterinary services at the Haines Animal Rescue Kennel. Many Haines households have multiple pets including dogs, cats, birds, rabbits and goats, she said, and some animals have been caught up in the chaos of the past week. 

"Lots of dogs are throwing up and not eating and a lot of it is going back to either anxiety or, you know, they're getting into food they shouldn't have," she said.

One dog, she recounted, ate a bone it normally wouldn't have been given. She had to perform a surgery on it "in the middle of the night" to remove the bone from its intestine. 

"We're kind of working in a really small space here, it's not really set up for surgery and I ended up getting a human physician just to give me a hand because there's just nobody here to help," Oakley said. 

She estimated she had treated about 30 animals over the past two days. 

Be prepared to leave, some residents told

Haines residents were warned about potential evacuations over the weekend as weather conditions deteriorated and the risk of landslides remained high.

The Haines Borough government on Saturday night cautioned about a third of the residents to be prepared to leave at a moment's notice. The Haines Emergency Operations Center said the notice remained in effect Sunday.

Up to 3.8 centimetres of rain was expected by Monday morning and warmer temperatures were expected to melt new snowpack. The combined runoff could further erode hillsides and cause additional avalanches, officials said.

The Ketchikan Emergency Operations Center said in a statement Saturday that evacuated residents were permitted to return home after rainfall slowed and the water level at Ketchikan Lakes fell to about 106 metres.

Alaska Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy declared a state of emergency Saturday for communities affected by the severe storm that led to landslides, flooded buildings and roads, downed trees and caused power outages.

More than 12 southeast communities reported damages and the need for disaster recovery assistance, the governor's office said.