Several missing after Alaska mudslide hits homes

Six people were missing after a mudslide measuring an estimated two football fields across slammed into a neighborhood in the southeast Alaska community of Haines, Alaska state troopers said Wednesday. It was one of several reported mudslides after a period of intense rain that authorities said destroyed at least four houses and damaged others.

Search and rescue efforts were suspended Wednesday evening as rains continued to batter the area and a flash flood warning was in effect until late Wednesday. The Haines Borough mayor told The Associated Press that search efforts would resume Thursday morning, adding that the state would be providing additional resources. The borough has about 2,500 residents.

Those unaccounted for were living in the Beach Road area, where the largest slide - about 600 feet (183 meters) wide - came down Wednesday afternoon, according to the mayor. About nine feet (2.7 meters) of mud and trees covered the area, according to the troopers. About 30 people were evacuated, and emergency response crews rescued others.

Haines resident Luke Williams said the community was coming together after the rainstorm, which he said was the worst he had ever seen in the area where he has lived throughout his 39 years. An effort to fly search and rescue teams in a helicopter from Juneau was pushed back to Thursday morning, troopers said. The Coast Guard was also deploying forces from other ports in southeast Alaska to help. 

(Image Credits: AP)