“There is some concern with the stability of the cliffside there and some additional material that appears like it might be coming down also, so we have barricaded the area off,” Wetor says. “Right now things are pretty unstable there. And I think we need to give it some space and let it do its thing.”

A landslide in Wrangell, Alaska, killed three people, destroyed homes, and left three missing after heavy rainfall triggered the disaster.

"Talk of Alaska discusses the science behind landslide risk and early warning systems in the wake of Wrangell's third deadly landslide since 2015."

Otto Florschutz, a candidate in the 2022 U.S. House special election, was found dead following a landslide in Wrangell, Alaska, that also claimed the lives of four members of the Heller family.

A landslide warning system developed in Sitka is now available to the public as an online dashboard, and work is underway to export the project to other communities in Southeast Alaska.

The region is prime landslide territory and a changing climate - trending toward warmer, rainier winters - is likely to increase the frequency of slides in the future.