A devastating storm, the remnants of Typhoon Halong, has left an indelible mark on Western Alaska, and the aftermath is a stark reminder of the power of nature. On October 11, 2025, the typhoon's remnants unleashed hurricane-force winds and unprecedented flooding on numerous Alaska Native villages along the southwest coast. The destruction was immense, with utility poles shattered, boardwalks uprooted, and homes floating away, some still occupied by families.
The state of Alaska is facing a significant crisis, with over a thousand people displaced and some left without a home to return to. Sadly, one woman lost her life, and two of her family members remain missing. The Emergency Operations Center is in a state of high alert, and Governor Mike Dunleavy has called for a federal disaster declaration to address the region's dire situation.
The Impact of Typhoon Halong's Remnants
The Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, an area in Western Alaska spanning hundreds of miles from the U.S. road system and roughly the size of Oregon, bore the brunt of the storm's impact. With dozens of small villages scattered across this vast region, the coastal villages of Kipnuk and Kwigillingok suffered the most, leading to almost complete evacuation, as per the State Emergency Operations Center.
Regional health officials have reported substantial damage in over a dozen villages, and nearly 50 have reported some impact. The full extent of the damage is still being assessed, but it is clear that many will face permanent displacement.
Evacuations: A Challenging Undertaking
Initially, many displaced residents sought shelter in schools throughout the region. However, with essential services like heating, fuel, water, and sewer systems strained, local officials deemed it unsafe for people to remain. Emergency responders began evacuating people to Bethel, the region's hub community, which had comparatively minimal storm damage. Yet, the emergency shelter there quickly reached capacity, leading to the evacuation of displaced residents to Anchorage, a 400-mile air journey away.
The remoteness of the area significantly complicated and slowed the evacuation process. With runways damaged in at least one village, helicopters were needed for some evacuations. U.S. Coast Guard rescue crews recounted moving people out of communities in groups of six.
The Human Cost and Connection to Land
Buggy Carl, the tribal administrator in Kipnuk, expressed the daunting nature of leaving the community for its residents, given their deep-rooted history and connection to the land. The villages of the Kuskokwim Delta are the traditional homelands of generations of Yup'ik people.
"I know their mindset, that their heart is here," Buggy Carl said. "They don't know anywhere else to go because they grew up here. They have their own food sources throughout the year, relying on subsistence hunting. They just can't leave."
This connection to the land and its resources is a primary concern for those facing long-term relocation. Some who've stayed behind in destroyed villages aim to salvage what subsistence foods they can, including moose, musk ox, beluga, salmonberries, salmon, and seal oil. Others mourn the loss of their ancestors' graves, with residents of Kwigillingok reporting the sight of unearthed coffins piled up at the end of the airport runway after the floodwaters receded.
The Storm's Unexpected Path and Climate Change's Role
Climate models initially showed the remnant typhoon tracking north, but it suddenly shifted and accelerated, taking a path directly towards the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta coast. This sudden change occurred just a day and a half before the storm reached Alaska's waters, leaving little time for evacuation. The region is already on the front lines of climate change, with permafrost, which underpins many villages, thawing and leading to rapid erosion and instability.
The Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium predicts that nearly 150 communities in Alaska, many in the Y-K Delta, will need to relocate fully or partially in the coming years due to permafrost thaw, land subsidence, erosion, or a combination of these climate-driven factors. The vast tundra of the Delta, sitting close to sea level, and the less stable foundations of many homes and buildings, make the land and structures more vulnerable to storm-driven erosion and flood damage.
The Road to Recovery
If communities choose to rebuild, they face significant challenges. It is both expensive and logistically complex to transport building materials to these remote villages. Donations began pouring in the day after the storm, coordinated by volunteers at Bethel Search and Rescue, but the region is still recovering from major flooding in August of the previous year.
Kipnuk, one of the villages hardest hit by the remnants of Typhoon Halong, received one of the first-ever federal disaster declarations for an Alaska tribe in the wake of that flooding. The road to recovery is long and uncertain, but the resilience and strength of these communities will be tested as they navigate the aftermath of this devastating storm.
And this is the part most people miss: the human stories of resilience and the deep connection to the land that these communities embody. It's a reminder that, in the face of climate change, we must not only address the physical impacts but also the cultural and emotional toll it takes on those most affected.
