Three men presumed killed in Sitka slides

Two of the three men presumed killed by landslides in Sitka on Aug. 18 had been located by Tuesday, as the search for a third continued.

Six landslides and a sinkhole occurred in and around the Southeast Alaska community after it received heavy, sustained rains. The fatal slide struck the Kramer Avenue neighborhood, northwest of town.

Search efforts were initially hampered by continued bad weather and safety concerns due to still-unstable terrain.

Sitka Police Department confirmed the bodies of brothers Elmer and Ulises Diaz had both been found by searchers last Thursday. Aged 26 and 25, respectively, the Kramer Avenue house they had been working inside of was struck by a landslide.

William Stortz, 62, remained

missing by press-time Tuesday

afternoon. According to radio station KCAW’s coverage of the tragedy, Stortz had been inspecting drainage for

the City of Sitka when he was

caught up in the slide. Two other men who had been with him managed to escape.

Due to the break in weather, recovery efforts resumed Monday morning. Sitka’s incident management team planned to continue searching through this evening for Stortz, before another weather pattern is expected.

Several neighborhoods were evacuated, and by Tuesday some residents were still unable to return to their homes. A state of emergency has been declared by the city and by Gov. Bill Walker, who visited Sitka on Aug. 20.

“This has been a very sad week for the people of Sitka,” he said in a release. “My thoughts and prayers go out to the entire community, and to the loved ones of those who remain missing in the aftermath of the landslides. Tragedies like this are never easy to cope with, but I was heartened to see so many volunteers and first responders working hard to bring comfort to their fellow Sitka residents.”

Residents and businesses took in those who were displaced by the disaster, and people have been quick to react to the tragedy with kindness and generosity.

“The response has been really great here in Sitka,” said Major Turnie Wright, with Sitka’s Salvation Army. Food, clothing and financial assistance has been collected to help those affected by the landslide and emergency responders.

“We are still collecting food items as well as cash donations,” Wright said. Those interested in helping can send goods or cash to the Salvation Army at PO Box 454, Sitka, AK 99835. Donors can write Sitka Emergency or Landslide in the attention.

At the website GoFundMe.com, an account set up for those affected by the landslides found support, with 125 people raising $11,320 in five days. Closing yesterday, the page was created to raise money for housing and other needs of those affected by the landslides. All money left over from the fund after those needs are met will be donated to the families who have lost loved ones in the slides.

For more information, the city is keeping updates on its http://www.CityofSitka.com site. A phone number has also been set up as a point of contact at 747-1808.