Rescue crews have suspended efforts to find the remains of a 12-year old boy presumed killed in a landslide that left his entire family dead just before Thanksgiving in the remote southeast Alaska island town of Wrangell. (Photo courtesy of Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities)
Dec. 14 (UPI) — Officials in the southeast Alaska island city of Wrangell announced Thursday that they have officially suspended their efforts to find a 12-year-old boy missing in the debris following a 500-foot-wide landslide that killed an entire family and another long-time resident just before Thanksgiving.
“The decision to end the active search comes after 15 days of tireless and exhaustive efforts by the Wrangell Volunteer Fire Department Search and Rescue teams,” the City and Borough of Wrangell said in a statement.
“After careful consideration and evaluation of all available information, it has been determined that all accessible search areas have been thoroughly examined. Search and Rescue volunteers and a scent detection K9 team will be available to respond with active searching if any new information or evidence leads to a specific search area in the future,” the statement added.
The landslide, prompted by high winds, extremely wet weather and saturated ground, rocked the close-knit former logging town of 2,000 residents in Alaska’s southeast panhandle about 800 miles north of Seattle and nearly 1,000 miles southeast of Anchorage. The only way on or off the island is by boat or plane.
The slide leveled three houses and killed the entire Heller family. Timothy Heller, 44, Beth Heller, 36, Mara Heller, 16, and Kara Heller, 11, were all found dead in the days after the slide occurred about 11 miles outside of town on Wrangell’s only paved road.
Search and rescue teams used drones, dogs and heavy excavation equipment to find the bodies in the debris left in the slide’s wake. Twelve-year-old Derek Heller has not been found and officials have now called off the search.
Longtime resident and local activist Otto Florschutz, 65, was also found dead amid the debris. Florschutz ran an unsuccessful campaign for Congress last year, joining dozens of candidates in the special election to replace the late Rep. Don Young. His wife, Christina, survived the slide and described her escape from beneath a mountain of trees and mud as an “act of God.”
Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy issued a disaster declaration for Wrangell following the slide, and made state resources available to aid in search and rescue efforts. The state transportation department sent heavy excavation equipment to town by barge. Local community members and those from neighboring island towns banded together to help in relief efforts.
The town’s local community radio station, KSTK-FM, which is supported by listener donations, is the only source of daily local news and information for locals. It became a go-to place for residents to get up-to-date information and relay messages to others, and continues to provide daily landslide updates on-air and online.
The state geologist said that the town, located in the Tongass National Forest, is prone to landslides based on its wet weather and geography, and that this year’s above average precipitation in an already very wet climate, added to the danger.
