Current:Home > Finance4th victim in Alaska landslide is 11-year-old girl; 2 people still missing, officials say -BeyondProfit Compass
4th victim in Alaska landslide is 11-year-old girl; 2 people still missing, officials say
View
Date:2025-04-13 00:01:26
Authorities recovered the body of 11-year-old Kara Heller Saturday night from debris left behind by a massive landslide in southeast Alaska that killed three other people and left two others missing, according to the Associated Press.
Heller is the fourth person confirmed killed by last Monday's landslide. The others were the girl's parents, Timothy Heller, 44, and Beth Heller, 36, and her sister Mara Heller, 16.
Rescue crews found Mara's body in the initial search, and the bodies of Timothy and Beth were found late Tuesday by a drone operator.
Search crews are looking for a third child still missing from the Heller family, Derek, 12, and neighbor Otto Florschutz, 65, the Alaska Department of Public Safety told the Associated Press.
Alaska State Troopers said in a statement last Tuesday that three homes were in the direct path of the disaster around 8:50 p.m. local time Monday near Wrangell, a fishing community with just over 2,000 residents about 155 miles southeast of Juneau.
Alaska landslide:Landslide leaves 3 dead and trail of damage in remote community of Wrangell, Alaska
Alaska landslide: search and rescue efforts
First responders were on the scenes searching for survivors, the troopers said. Authorities urged residents to contact local police if they know someone who is missing.
The landslide cut off access and power to about 75 homes, the state emergency management office said, and boats have been taking residents from the cut-off area to an unaffected part of town.
Photos posted on social media showed barren earth near the top of the mountain all the way down to the Pacific Ocean and remnants of destroyed homes.
Aaron Jacobs, a hydrologist and meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Juneau, told the Associated Press Wrangell received nearly 2 inches of rain from 1 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday and wind gusts of up to 60 mph in higher elevations.
The storm was part of a system that moved through southeast Alaska and brought heavy snow to Haines and blizzard-like conditions to Juneau, Jacobs said. Areas farther south had minor flooding.
Landslides were reported near Ketchikan and on Prince of Wales Island. KTUU, a local TV station in Alaska, reported several landslides happening across the state that damaged homes, caused power outages and closed major highways.
Search suspended:5-year-old girl dies, search suspended for man swept out by California wave: Coast Guard
veryGood! (29)
Related
- The Best Stocking Stuffers Under $25
- 20 sharks found dead after killer whales' surgical feeding frenzy
- After years of ever-shrinking orchestras, some Broadway musicals are going big
- Secrets of the National Spelling Bee: Picking the words to identify a champion
- Juan Soto to be introduced by Mets at Citi Field after striking record $765 million, 15
- In 'American Born Chinese,' a beloved graphic novel gets Disney-fied
- 'Past Lives' is a story about love and choices
- Jane Fonda's Parenting Regret Is Heartbreakingly Relatable
- NFL Week 15 picks straight up and against spread: Bills, Lions put No. 1 seed hopes on line
- SAG Awards 2023 Red Carpet Fashion: See Every Look as the Stars Arrive
Ranking
- IRS recovers $4.7 billion in back taxes and braces for cuts with Trump and GOP in power
- Family Karma: See Every Photo From Amrit Kapai and Nicholas Kouchoukos' Wedding
- 12 Gifts That Every Outer Banks Fan Will Fall In Love With
- Françoise Gilot, the famed artist who loved and then left Picasso, is dead at 101
- 2025 'Doomsday Clock': This is how close we are to self
- The 2023 SAG Awards Nominations Are Finally Here
- South Korea, U.S. shirk North Korea's threats of counteractions, carry on planning for joint war games
- Take Your Skin’s Hydration to the Next Level With This $80 Deal on $214 Worth of Josie Maran Products
Recommendation
Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow owns a $3 million Batmobile Tumbler
The Irony Of the Deinfluencing Trend All Over TikTok
DC Comics' boss knows the challenges ahead — and the problem superhero films can pose
Why Louis Tomlinson Was “Mortified” After One Direction’s Breakup
Whoopi Goldberg is delightfully vile as Miss Hannigan in ‘Annie’ stage return
In honor of 'Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' season 2, a tour of the physics
Georgi Gospodinov and Angela Rodel win International Booker Prize for 'Time Shelter'
The Hills' Kaitlynn Carter Gives Birth, Welcomes Baby No. 2 With Kristopher Brock