11-Year-Old Found Dead After Alaska Landslide Killed 3 Members of Her Family, 2 People Still Missing

Aftermath of deadly landslide in Wrangell, Alaska.Photo:City and Borough of Wrangell

City and Borough of Wrangell

An 11-year-old girl has been found dead, days aftera large landsliderocked a small community in Alaska.

The recovery was made with help from a scent detection K-9, which pinpointed the spot where Heller was located, they added.

Police said two people are still missing following the Nov. 20 landslide: Derek Heller, 12, and Otto Florschutz, 65. Florschutz’s wife survived the event, according to theAssociated Press.

Three people — Beth Heller, 36, Timothy Heller, 44, and Mara Heller, 16 —were found deadfollowing the slide, per police.  Beth and Timothy Heller were Kara’s parents, and Mara was the 11-year-old’s sister, reported the AP.

The landslide occurredfollowing a region-wide stormwith heavy rain and high winds, Alaska Department of Transportation spokesperson Shannon McCarthy said at a press conference on Tuesday.

The slide was about 500 feet wide at the point where it crossed Zimovia Highway at mile 11, she added.

The City of Wrangell shared images that depict theaftermath of the massive slide.

Aftermath of deadly landslide in Wrangell, Alaska.City and Borough of Wrangell

Barrett Salisbury, a geologist with the Alaska Department of Natural Resources, said the landslide that impacted Wrangell is known as a “debris flow” — which occurs when heavy rainfall or rapid snowmelt adds extra moisture into the soil and causes once-stable land to give way.

Debris flows are “notably destructive” but difficult to predict without special equipment in place beforehand, Salisbury noted during Tuesday’s press conference.

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The active search for victims has since transitioned into a “reactive search,” with assistance from K-9 teams from Wrangell, Petersburg and Juneau, they added.

source: people.com