Western Alaska Typhoon: Neighbors Helping Neighbors

Alaskans have a tradition of helping neighbors, Whether it’s pulling a vehicle out of a ditch or sharing salmon with our elders, we help each other. We’ve seen more examples lately.

Last week, Typhoon Halong hit Western Alaska hard. Villages up and down the coast were flooded and pummeled by high winds. Hundreds of people had to be evacuated and many others experienced damage to their homes and belongings. One of the worst aspects—many villagers live a subsistence lifestyle, and depend on freezers full of meat, fish and berries to get them through the winter. Lack of electricity and flooding have wiped out their food supplies, and will make it hard for Alaska Native folks to eat their traditional foods.

It's heartening to see how people have stepped in to help. A few residents stayed behind to secure what they could. In the immediate aftermath, villagers, members of the Alaska Army National Guard, the Alaska State Defense Force, FEMA staff, and others worked to evacuate residents. The Association of Village Council Presidents, Yukon-Kuskokwim Heath Corporation, the Red Cross, and Salvation Army assisted with providing shelter and supplies to evacuees moved to Anchorage and Bethel. Other residents found shelter with friends and family in other towns. (I’m probably leaving out some groups—my apologies; there are so many people involved.) Once everyone got out safely, efforts shifted to the next phase. Alaska Division of Forestry and Fire Protection workers joined the efforts of other groups, helping with clean up and repair of houses.

The State of Alaska created the Alaska Disaster Housing Task Force. Bethel welcomed many evacuees. In Anchorage, the municipal government has opened two large shelters to take in hundreds of evacuees. The Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium and the Alaska Native Heritage Center are taking donations of traditional food. The St. Innocent Russian Orthodox Cathedral hosted a Native foods potluck. While these things won’t fix everything, they help, and they show affected Alaskans that they’re not alone.

Want to help? Everyone can donate to the Western Alaska Disaster Relief 2025 Fund, the primary fund for the Western Alaska disaster, established by the Alaska Community Foundation and other community partners. For more ideas, check out the Alaska Public Media website at https://alaskapublic.org/news/environment/2025-10-14/heres-how-you-can-help-survivors-of-the-western-alaska-storm.