Alaska briefed on Typhoon Halong damage, FEMA aid caps and long recovery needs

ANCHORAGE — Brian Fisher, director of the Alaska Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, told a joint hearing of the House Tribal Affairs and House Community and Regional Affairs committees on Feb. 3 that Typhoon Halong last October produced “catastrophic” coastal flooding in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta and that recovery will take years.

Fisher said the storm behaved as three separate events and that the two communities with the worst damage were Kipnuk and a nearby village cited in the briefing. He described dramatic search-and-rescue operations by Alaska State Troopers, the U.S. Coast Guard, the Alaska Army and Air National Guard and volunteers, and said 51 rescues were recorded. More than 1,000 people were evacuated, many to Bethel and Anchorage, and large domestic airlifts transported survivors to congregate shelters before most were moved into hotels and — later — apartments.

Why it matters: Lawmakers pressed Fisher on the limits of federal aid, the size of preliminary damage estimates, housing and environmental cleanup. Fisher warned that the standard FEMA Individual Assistance caps are far short of rebuilding costs for remote Alaska, and he said the governor has asked FEMA and the White House for expanded authorities and a higher federal cost share.

FEMA aid, estimates and pending requests

Fisher told the committees that under FEMA’s Individual Assistance program a household may receive up to $44,800 for personal property (Other Needs Assistance) and up to $44,800 for housing repair or replacement. He said the personal-property portion is funded at about 75% federal and 25% state, while the housing repair portion is fully federally funded under current rules. “That is correct,” Fisher said when asked to confirm the $44,800 caps.

FEMA’s initial life-of-disaster cost estimate for the event is about $125 million, Fisher said, and he expects that figure will rise as damage assessments continue. He said roughly 75% of that estimate is anticipated to come from federal sources and 25% from the state under existing cost-share rules. Fisher also said the governor has asked the president to reconsider a denial of an earlier waiver and has requested 90% federal funding for the first 90 days of emergency work; that reconsideration remained pending at the time of the hearing.

Permanent housing authority and rebuilding logistics

Fisher said the state has requested FEMA’s permanent housing construction authority under the Stafford Act, which — if approved — could expand federal help for shipping, materials and labor for remote rebuilding. He described ongoing work with FEMA, HUD, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities and regional housing authorities to model the logistics of maritime shipping, barge schedules and winter preparation.

“Many of the homes that were elevated on pilings survived largely intact,” Fisher said, arguing that rebuilding with elevated or helical foundations could sharply reduce future risk. At the same time he warned that federal disaster programs are generally designed to repair and rebuild in place and do not provide authority to relocate entire communities.

Households, housing placements and local hiring

Fisher said congregate shelters were closed within about two weeks and that the state moved many survivors into hotels and then into apartments, using FEMA rental assistance. At the time of the briefing he reported 182 individuals in six Anchorage hotels and that the state was working to transition households (about 82 households and roughly 400 people) into apartments.

On using recovery dollars to boost local economies, Fisher said federal disaster aid typically does not directly fund private, for‑profit businesses (that role falls to SBA loans), but the state is working to prioritize local hires, contractor training (for example HAZWOPER and flagger certifications) and to link local builders to reconstruction work.

Environmental cleanup, subsistence and mental-health supports

Fisher told lawmakers that the Department of Environmental Conservation, U.S. EPA and the Coast Guard are leading technical cleanup work for contaminated soils, petroleum spills and household hazardous waste; much of that cleanup will proceed when breakup allows crews to access sites. He said planners are developing backhaul options so barges that deliver building materials can also remove contaminated debris, because local landfills lack capacity.

Fisher and tribal partners emphasized culturally appropriate assistance. The Department of Fish and Game and the Alaska Native Heritage Center coordinated extended subsistence-harvest permissions and refrigerated storage to bring traditional foods to displaced residents. Fisher said FEMA approved an allowance to help replace subsistence food losses within the Individual Assistance cap (initially $1,000 per household, with a request to raise it), noting this is a unique Alaska consideration.

On behavioral health, Fisher said the governor requested SAMHSA crisis-counseling programs (immediate and longer-term) and that tribal health organizations mobilized mental-health professionals at shelters and community meetings.

Claims and status

Fisher disputed press reports that Alaska was “denied assistance,” telling lawmakers the state received the same disaster declaration support as other states but that the governor’s request for an increased federal cost-share waiver was denied and is under reconsideration. He also warned that FEMA program caps and the rising cost of materials mean typical federal maximums will not fully cover rebuilding in remote Alaska.

What’s next

Fisher urged legislative support for the governor’s proposed state disaster relief fund appropriations to cover nonfederal shares and early needs while federal processes continue. He said the state will be engaged in recovery and cleanup “as long as it takes” to return people home safely and that many decisions about long-term recovery — including whether and how communities might consider relocation — will require local consent and deliberation.

Representative Jimmy Koyana, whose district includes the hardest-hit villages, told the committee in a first-person account that families lost houses and heirlooms and described the emotional toll on survivors. “For the first time, we didn’t sleep the whole night,” Koyana said, describing people who watched homes float away and those who found coffins pass by their houses.

The committees said they will continue oversight and follow-up as damage assessments, interagency coordination and federal decisions proceed.