For several southwest Alaska communities, it will take years to replace what was lost in one night of hurricane force winds and floods, unleashed from the remnants of Typhoon Halong. Some may never rebuild completely.
How and where to begin is a question that seven trainees tackled at a construction workshop offered by the Alaska Works Partnership, a non-profit agency funded mostly by the state.
Most of the apprentices were from Kipnuk, one of the hardest hit communities. They evacuated to Anchorage after the storm struck the Western Alaska coast on Oct. 9.
"They just lost their homes," said Tiffany Caudle, the training coordinator for Alaska Works Partnership. "They lost everything."
But Caudle said that the workshop comes at a good time.
"I do think this is really helping them stay positive and stay hopeful," Caudle said.
Hands-on recovery
The men were all volunteers who signed up for 40-hours of training on how to frame a house.
They started on Oct. 20 at the program's headquarters in Mountain View. They met in a big garage, empty except for a stack of boards, nails, and tools. But soon, the constant clang of hammers and the buzz of electric saws filled the room with energy.
"This is the door, and this one's going to be the window," said Devon Mann as he laid out the boards for his house frame.
"Everything we're learning in here and doing, it's going to be useful for our village," Mann said.
Trauma is still fresh
Mann, who is 19, looked sharp in his brand new hoodie. It was given to him after military planes airlifted him and almost his entire community of Kipnuk to Anchorage. He arrived with only the clothing he had on, but after a 5-mile ride in a floating house, he still carried the baggage of trauma.
"The way the house was rocking, how fast we were going," Mann said, "worst experience I ever had."
Most of Mann's family made it to the school, but he and his 16-year-old brother stayed behind to salvage valuables that were floating away. Suddenly, the water came up and trapped them in their house. As the surge carried it off, the power went out and in the darkness they jammed every bit of bedding, towels and clothing they could find against the wall in a desperate attempt to block the flow. They bailed the water out with buckets, but it rose up to their knees.
"I thought something bad was going to happen to the house, like break apart. I thought that would be it for us," said Mann, who almost gave up. "But I had hope. I had hope."
And it's hope that keeps him going now.
Hope takes shape
"Leveling, framing, stuff we're doing here in the training – it's useful in the village," Mann said.
Mann and the other trainees still don't know whether Kipnuk will be rebuilt or eventually moved to higher ground, but they want to be prepared to help whatever the future brings.
"I want to step up," Mann said, "And I want to know what to do in that moment."
William Andrew, who has been an instructor at Alaska Works Partnership for almost 20 years, is impressed with Mann and the rest of his group. He calls them "naturals," because they have been quick to catch on.
"From what they went through, I'll be honest with you, their attitudes are awesome," Andrew said. "They're wanting to learn. They're being great."
As Andrew walked around the room, he peppered his students with questions about their work – quick to point out small mistakes that might later lead to bigger problems.
"I can't stress it enough. Use your wrist. Use your wrist," Andrew reminded them as he waved a hammer to warn them about putting stress on their arm muscles.
Andrew knows it'll take more than one workshop to teach his Kipnuk apprentices how to rebuild their village, but he hopes it will give them a good foundation to learn more.
"The class has been going so great that I think they're going to be telling all of their neighbors and all of their friends," Andrew said. "I think there's going to be a lot more demand for training."
New partners needed
Alaska Works Partnership is now in search of more funding to offer more classes for the disaster evacuees. The agency hopes it can attract some new partners who will recognize that this group needs the help at a critical time.
Like his students, Andrew is Yup'ik and comes from a small village. He's originally from New Stuyahok in Bristol Bay and knows, from his own experience, that far too many village construction jobs go to outside contractors who hire very few locals. But Andrew hopes this time will be different.
"I'm excited about their future. And I'm hoping they get to rebuild it," Andrew said.
