After last year's storm, this remote Alaska town is still picking up the pieces

A year after the remnants of Typhoon Halong devastated Kipnuk, a remote Alaska Native village accessible mainly by plane, residents remain scattered across the state and uncertain when they can return. About 90% of the village’s homes were damaged, and dozens were swept from their foundations, sometimes with families inside. Local crews are working to repair buildings, including lifting some back onto foundations, but the recovery is slow. State officials expect federal disaster funds to make most homes livable by Thanksgiving through basic repairs such as replacing insulation and fixing roofs, windows and doors. The money will not fully restore the worst-damaged houses, and the school’s reopening has no timeline. Many residents lacked insurance, while some - particularly older people - are too traumatized to move back.

Rebuilding also leaves a larger question unresolved: climate change is increasing the danger of future storms, and many residents would prefer to relocate the village to safer ground. Current federal funding can pay to restore damaged property, not move the community, and Kipnuk has no money for relocation. Meanwhile, displacement separates people from relatives, Yugtun language, and subsistence hunting and gathering; children also face unfamiliar hazards in larger towns. Families who return for summer visits can reconnect with one another and the land, gathering salmonberries and maintaining cultural practices, but those trips are brief. Residents want to come home, yet it remains unclear when families - and the community - can be reunited.