Typhoon Haloing Hits Alaska, Houses Dragged By Sea Currents, Hundreds Of Residents Refuge

Illustration of the house on the coast. (Sangam sharma-Unsplash)

JAKARTA - Topan Halong strong hit the Alaska region from last weekend. Rescue teams continued to struggle to deal with evacuating victims in remote areas on the coast of Alaska until Tuesday local time.

Quoting AFP, Wednesday, October 15, the potential for strong winds to appear accompanied by heavy rains is still happening, limiting the team's duties in carrying out rescues.

More than 1,500 people were displaced. Meanwhile, dozens of people were evacuated from the worst locations using a fleet of flights to refugee camps in the US National Guard arsenal in Bethel.

Alaskan officials are currently considering moving refugees to long-term shelters or emergency housing in Fairbanks and Anchorage, due to overloaded shelter locations.

The worst-affected area in Alaska is Kipnuk with a population of 715 people, and Kwigillingok with a population of 380 people. Both areas are located outside the main road of the state of Alaskan and can only be reached using a fleet of water or air.

While in isolated lowlands, in the coastal area of the southwestern Alaskan region of the Kodan-Kuskokwim Delta, houses were swept away by heavy currents.

The Alaskan coast guard has evacuated about two dozen people from their homes that were swept into the sea. In this coastal area, hundreds of people are divecuated to shelter points such as in nearby schools, including one place that does not have a toilet.

A refueling site or gas station that supports water and land transportation from western Alaskans is affected. The damage to the gas station has the potential to contaminate wild fish and animals that indigenous Alaskans rely on to survive.

Food ingredients that are often stored in refrigerators such as salmon and large deer may not be consumed by Alaskans through winter because they are vulnerable.