Petersburg volunteers filled dozens of totes with donated personal items to send to Wrangell - including this tote with a personal message written on top. The totes were delivered Nov. 22 by Breakaway Adventures. The donations included shelf-stable food, pet food, clothing, blankets, daily essentials and such, with Wrangell volunteers offloading the totes for distribution to people displaced by the landslide.
Volunteers have come together to help Wrangell, particularly from Petersburg.
A crowd of volunteers, which included Parks and Recreation Director Lucy Robinson, Chris and Dixie Booker from C&D Deliveries and fourth-grade teacher Brian Merritt, gathered at the Reliance Dock on Nov. 22 to offload donated relief supplies delivered from Petersburg by Breakaway Adventures.
The dozens of plastic totes were filled with food, water, blankets, clothing and other essentials - pet food, too.
Written in marker on the top of one of the totes and signed with a heart was a message from Petersburg: "Sent with love from our house to yours - we hope this helps keep your next few weeks and months cozy."
Jake Jabusch, who also volunteered to help offload the donations, said such generosity and solidarity in the midst of a crisis is normal for communities like Wrangell and Petersburg. "It seems like it's always been that way," he said.
Rhonda Butler, who is based in Juneau as the emergency operations specialist with the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska, was particularly motivated to help, as she grew up in Wrangell and still has family ties in town.
"When I got the call, of course they had to check to make sure that I was going to be capable of responding. And I said, 'If you didn't ask me, I would've told you I was going, regardless if I was working or not,'" she said. "I know my hometown needs."
Tammi Meissner, Wrangell's community navigator with Tlingit and Haida, said that she and Jillian Privett formed the Wrangell Strong Community Relief Group Facebook page to help coordinate relief efforts into one hub.
Requests have been posted on the community relief page and the regular community Facebook page that all social media posts related to the landslide feature the hashtag #wrangellstrong to reach more viewers.
Meissner also posted that they are creating a list of residents who could house evacuees. Anyone who would like to be added to the list can message her via Facebook, comment on one of her posts, or text her at 907-518-1418.
On the community relief Facebook page, Mike Nicholas from Ohio posted greetings and thanks to Wrangell residents, identifying himself as the brother of Christina Florschutz, who survived the slide. Her husband, Otto Florschutz, was still missing as of Monday.
"I would like to thank the entire community of Wrangell for all the help and support you have provided to my sister and her family as well as others in need there," he said. "You have an amazing community."
LIMITED CELL COVERAGE
Butler said Charlie Hazel opened his private dock at 12.7-Mile, past the area blocked by the landslide, to provide access for people arriving by boat, including search and rescue workers, police and fuel deliveries, and to assist the water taxis ferrying displaced residents.
Butler used that access to set up one of the Starlink systems she brought with her to restore cell service and internet at the south side of the 11-Mile landslide so that first responders and state, federal and local officials would have Wi-Fi access.
The portable satellite link has limited range, not much beyond the central command post, but residents who are stuck out the road could access the signal if they get close enough to the setup. According to the community relief Facebook page, the Wi-Fi name is TlingitHaida and the password is Wrangellstrong.
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