Search crews recovered a body from the Kramer Avenue landslide in Sitka, at about 7:15 p.m. on Wednesday evening.
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The instability of landslide debris is delaying a search Wednesday for three men believed to have been buried at a neighborhood construction site in a rain-saturated southeast Alaska town.
Officials say debris that crashed into the town of Sitka remains too unstable and poses a danger. The majority of earth and debris on the hillside have already come down, so there’s not much left to conjure up another landslide, which would have put the folks searching at even more risk.
The plan is for crews in Sitka to use heavy equipment to clear a ditch to divert away stream water that is washing over the debris to stabilize the ground, according to Jeremy Zidek, a spokesman for the state Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management.
However, rain fell again overnight, and Zidek said the area would have to be re-examined Thursday to make sure conditions didn’t change.
The sun was out Thursday, but more heavy rain was forecast Friday and into the weekend, with Sitka expected to get 2 to 3 inches over several days. The picturesque fishing community, tucked between snowcapped mountains and the Pacific Ocean, is nestled in rain forest terrain on the west coast of Baranof Island that is characterized by heavy rains year-round.
Ramon Hernandez says Elmer and Ulises Diaz are partners with him in Four Points Painting, a painting and drywall contractor in Sitka. The brothers are longtime residents who love playing basketball and are very close to each other, Hernandez said.
While in Sitka, the governor spent time with the families of the missing brothers as well as the family of Stortz.
“It’s pretty devastating on how fast something like this can happen”, Simpson, a retired commercial fisherman, said in a phone interview from a saloon. “I think it’s fair for me to have a phone call with good news now”. The structure was completely obliterated by the landslide which struck Tuesday morning (8-18-15). Three men missing in the slide were being searched for Wednesday. Some other homes in the area were evacuated, but Peterson did not know how many residences or people were affected.
The city of more than 9,000 people declared a state of emergency.
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City engineer Dan Tadic, from left, Fire Chief Dave Miller, Search and Rescue Capt. Lance Ewers and firefighter Rob Janik look at the damage caused by a landslide on Kramer Drive, Tuesday, August 18, 2015, in Sitka, Alaska.
