Search suspended for 2 people missing after Haines landslide

The search has been suspended for two people missing after a landslide in the small southeast Alaska community of Haines, amid continued rain and the likelihood of additional slides, said Alaska State Troopers Monday.

Torrential rains prompted several landslides in the community last Wednesday. The largest, about 183 meters wide, took out four homes in Haines. More than four dozen families have been evacuated because of the conditions, and motels in the town are full. Meanwhile, about a third of Haines residents were told they must be ready to evacuate at a moment's notice.

David Simmons, 30, and Jenae Larson, 23, have been missing since the slide. Simmons, the interim executive director of the Haines Economic Development Corp., owned one of the homes that was destroyed. Larson, 23, a recent University of Idaho graduate who returned to her hometown to teach kindergarten, rented an apartment above Simmons' garage.

The area was declared unsafe to search, said Austin McDaniel, a public information officer for the Alaska State Troopers. He said they would need several days of no rain in order to stabilize the landslide area.

"If there's a point in time in the future where it's safe to put people back in that area … to search, then we'll address that at that time," he said.

No rain for 1st time in days, donations pour in

Sheri Loomis, who lives in Haines, said it had stopped raining Tuesday for the first time in days. 

However, she said the ground is still soggy and more rain means "more areas could slide."

Loomis runs the Facebook Group "Haines Chatters," which has become an information hub for people in the community. It's also a place people can find links to donate, she said.

She said there's been a huge outpouring of donations since the landslide, including food and clothing for the displaced families.

"It's amazing that people have come together," said Loomis.

"You might have your differences with people, but when something like this happens those are gone."

Loomis said a van full of Christmas trees and decorations will be on its way later in the week, to help spread joy to displaced people in hotel rooms.

People clearing roads, testing water safety

Ground searchers sent to Haines with troopers left Monday, with one officer remaining to co-ordinate efforts with the borough police department and the incident command centre.

McDaniel said several agencies are in the area helping to clear roads and evaluate water safety.

"He says it's going to be a while before Haines resumes any semblance of normalcy," said McDaniel.

The agency would re-evaluate search efforts if new information or evidence is located, troopers said in a web posting.

The heavy rains have caused damage in at least 12 communities, prompting local officials to seek disaster recovery assistance, Alaska. Gov. Mike Dunleavy's office said. 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 power outages.

In the southeast Alaska community of Ketchikan, some residents were evacuated over fears of a dam failure.

The residents were permitted to return home Saturday night after rainfall slowed and the water level at Ketchikan Lakes fell to about 106 meters. Some residents grabbed surf boards to enjoy the three-foot surges.