An airlift is on in Alaska to rescue storm victims

One of the most significant airlifts in Alaskan history is underway by helicopter and military transport plane, moving hundreds of people from coastal villages ravaged by high surf and strong winds from the remnants of Typhoon Halong last weekend.

- BY BECKY BOHRER AND JESSE BEDAYN

THE VILLAGE of Kipnuk, Alaska, has seen water levels more than 6 feet above the highest normal tide line.

(KEITH C. HOREN Alaska Division of Geological Geophysical Surveys)

The storm brought record high water to two low-lying Alaska Native communities and washed away homes, some with people inside. At least one person was killed and two are missing. Makeshift shelters were quickly established and swelled to hold about 1,500 people, an extraordinary number in a sparsely populated region where communities are reachable only by air or water this time of year.

The remoteness and scale of the destruction created challenges for getting resources in place. Damage assessments have been trickling in as responders have shifted from initial search-and-rescue operations to trying to stabilize or restore basic services.

The communities of Kipnuk and Kwigillingok near the Bering Sea saw water levels more than 6 feet above the highest normal tide line.

Some 121 homes were destroyed in Kipnuk, a village of about 700 people.

Leaders asked the state to evacuate the more than 1,000 residents from those villages, said Jeremy Zidek, a spokesperson with the state emergency management office.