ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy said Thursday night that the airlift of residents displaced by Typhoon Halong could become one of the largest emergency evacuations in state history, as hundreds of evacuees arrived in Anchorage from flood-stricken Western Alaska.

Speaking from the Alaska Airlines Center on the University of Alaska Anchorage campus, where cots, food and medical care have been set up, Dunleavy said the first plane carrying evacuees landed Thursday evening and more were expected Friday.

“This may end up being one of the largest airlifts of Alaskans in the history of the state due to a disaster,” Dunleavy said. “We’re expecting upwards of 1,400 people, I think is the number, coming in tonight, tomorrow.”

The Red Cross, University of Alaska, the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, the National Guard and other agencies have helped convert the sports arena into a temporary shelter. Dunleavy said many evacuees arrived with little more than the clothes on their backs.

He thanked the City of Bethel, village leaders and Anchorage officials for opening their doors. “It’s a great thing that tells a lot about Alaska,” the governor said, calling those displaced “some of the most resilient people on the face of the earth.”

Entire villages devastated

Dunleavy described scenes of destruction in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, where homes were torn from their foundations and swept away.

“The scene that was described to me was almost something out of a warzone,” Dunleavy said, adding that some communities might be uninhabitable “for some time.”

Dunleavy said he and emergency managers plan to travel to the region Friday for an on-the-ground assessment to evaluate the extent of the damage.

“We’ll be going out there on Friday, a number of us, to actually do an on-the-ground assessment … to see what condition these villages are in, what condition the houses are in, the infrastructure,” he said.

The governor noted that Halong’s impact was more concentrated than Typhoon Merbok in 2022, which stretched over an 800-mile area. This time, he said, the devastation was more localized, meaning recovery efforts will need to focus closely on that region.

Federal support promised

Dunleavy said he had been in contact with President Donald Trump since late Wednesday night and that the president personally assured him of federal assistance.

“He has assured me that the federal government is going to be there to help,” Dunleavy said, noting that Trump had texted him after midnight Eastern time to offer federal assistance despite the ongoing government shutdown.

Dunleavy posted on X at around 11:30 p.m. Wednesday, “The first planeload of those impacted by the typhoon that hit Western Alaska arrived in Anchorage. We will do everything we can to get people back up on their feet as soon as possible. @POTUS asked me to let Alaskans know he is monitoring the situation and more help is on the way.”

The governor praised the Coast Guard, National Guard and local responders for rescuing people from flooded home. “It’s all hands on deck,” he said. “I couldn’t be prouder of Alaska.

Rebuilding will take time

The governor cautioned that recovery from Halong will be complex and time sensitive, with winter approaching. He said the first step is ensuring that all evacuees have safe shelter, food and medical care while officials begin assessing long-term needs.

“First priority is making sure people have a roof over their head, they have food, they have a place to sleep,” Dunleavy said “When they can go back to the villages … we don’t know that until we do the assessment.

He said he will join state emergency crews for a preliminary flyover and site visit Friday to evaluate conditions before freeze-up limits travel. “We don’t have much of a time to transition,” he said, noting that the storm struck just before the seasonal change.

Dunleavy said the state intends to move as quickly as possible to return to normalcy for the affected communities but warned that rebuilding villages could take time.

Despite the destruction, Dunleavy emphasized Alaskans’ resilience.

“Alaskans are tough people,” he said. “We’re going to do everything we can to get people back to where they were and get life back to normal as soon as possible.

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