Before last weekend’s storm, the lower Kuskokwim village of Napakiak was already in the middle of a community retreat from the rapidly eroding banks of the river, slowly moving houses and businesses away from the edge.
In late August, students attended classes in their brand new school about a mile away from the river. Now, around 50 people are sheltering there after the remnants of Typhoon Halong brought Kuskokwim floodwaters within a foot of the new building.
“One family had to crawl out when their home was drifting; everybody had to climb out to a boat through their windows,” said Walter Nelson, Napakiak’s managed retreat coordinator. “I can't imagine how all the families that went through this, how they felt.”
“This [storm] is the worst case scenario that we've never thought of before,” Nelson said. “And really realizing another one that's coming or could be hitting us could wipe out Napakiak. Who knows [if] other villages in the same boat as us.”
Nelson said that basically every house in Napakiak and most businesses had water come into them. The city office and local clinic weren’t inundated, but they still sustained damage.
Community members said that more than two-dozen houses in Napakiak were displaced from their foundations when the storm hit – around a quarter of the homes in the village. And many homes in Napakiak are without water, electricity, or sewer – posing a major health concern.
“Every, what we call a dog house, or sewage tank, that is connected to a house or business have either been displaced, or moved, or drifted,” Nelson said.
Nelson said that it’s the same with fuel tanks, so homes also don’t have working heat.
“I've never seen a storm come in this strong before,” Nelson said. “I live in a house that is pretty high from the road, but it came into my heating system. I'm not the only one.”
Nelson said that there are a lot of needs in Napakiak, but at the top of the list are drinkable water and cleaning supplies to clean up the mud and debris from flooding.
“I can't tell you how we're going to survive,” Nelson said. “But we're going to be working closely with any entity that is willing to help us rebuild Napakiak.”
For now, Nelson said that families are staying in the school and haven’t been evacuated upriver to Bethel.
KYUK’s Evan Erickson contributed reporting.
