5 family members and a commercial fisherman neighbor are ID’d as dead or missing in Alaska landslide
WRANGELL, Ala. — Authorities on Friday identified those missing or killed in an Alaska landslide as five family members and their neighbor, a commercial fisherman who last year ran for the state’s sole seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Timothy Heller, 44, and Beth Heller, 36 – plus their children Mara, 16; Dirk, 12; and Kara, 11 – were home Monday evening when the landslide struck. Search crews found the bodies of the parents and oldest child late Monday or early Tuesday; the younger children remain missing, as does neighbor Otto Florschutz, 65, the Alaska Department of Public Safety said in an emailed statement.
Florschutz’s wife survived the landslide.
Florschutz, a Republican who previously served on the Wrangell Port Commission, entered the race to fill the congressional seat left vacant when former U.S. Rep. Don Young died last year. He received 193 votes out of almost 162,000 votes cast.
In a candidate statement to the Anchorage Daily News, Florschutz said he was known for his ability to build consensus.
“As a 42-year-old commercial fisherman, I have worn many hats,” he said. “In addition to catching fish, I have served in community elected positions, doing boat repairs, mechanics, welding, carpentry, business and much more.”
Beth Heller served on the Wrangell School Board from 2019 to 2020, after several years on the district’s parent advisory committee.
The Hellers ran a construction company called Heller High Water, said Tyla Nelson, who described herself as Beth Heller’s best friend since high school. Beth and Timothy both grew up in Wrangell and married in August 2010, Nelson said.
Nelson sobbed as she described her friend as a “fantastic person.”
“And she was a great mother,” she said. “She did everything for those babies.”
The slide tore a swath of evergreen trees from the top of the mountain above the homes to the ocean, burying a highway in the island community of Wrangell, about 150 miles south of Juneau.
The slide, estimated to be 450 feet (137 meters) wide, occurred during rain and a storm. Wrangell received about 2 inches of rain Monday morning through late evening, with wind gusts up to 60 miles per hour at higher elevations, said Aaron Jacobs, a hydrologist and meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Juneau.
About 54 homes were cut off from the city by the landslide, and about 35 to 45 people have chosen to remain in the area, said Mason Villarma, interim city manager. Boats are used to deliver supplies including food, fuel, water and prescription medications.
Given the island’s geography — with the town on the northern tip and homes along a 13-mile stretch of paved road — currently “the ocean is our only access to those homes,” Villarma said.
On Friday, officers continued clearing debris from a roadway.