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Final Body Found After Deadly Landslide in Sitka, Alaska

Crews found the body of William Stortz Tuesday, a week after landslides triggered by heavy rains swept down hillsides in Sitka, Alaska.
Image: Sitka City Administrator Mark Gorman stands in front of a house on Kramer Avenue as contractors and other search members look for William Stortz
Sitka City Administrator Mark Gorman stands in front of a house on Kramer Avenue as contractors and other search members look Aug. 20 in the area where city building inspector William Stortz was last seen when a landslide hit in Sitka, Alaska, Aug. 18.James Poulson / Daily Sitka Sentinel via AP

Searchers in Alaska on Tuesday recovered the third and last body of three people who went missing after a landslide last week, authorities said.

Crews found the body of William Stortz at 4:15 p.m. local time (8:15 p.m. ET). Stortz was one of three men who went missing and were presumed dead following a landslide in Sitka on Aug. 18, the city and borough of Sitka said in a statement.

Image: Sitka City Administrator Mark Gorman stands in front of a house on Kramer Avenue as contractors and other search members look for William Stortz
Sitka City Administrator Mark Gorman stands in front of a house on Kramer Avenue as contractors and other search members look Aug. 20 in the area where city building inspector William Stortz was last seen when a landslide hit in Sitka, Alaska, Aug. 18.James Poulson / Daily Sitka Sentinel via AP

The landslide that carried mud and trees sweeping down a road occurred after 24 hours of heavy rain in the mountainous community in Alaska’s southeastern tip.

The bodies of brothers Elmer and Ulises Diaz were found on Aug. 19 and Aug. 20, near the debris of a home that was destroyed, the city said.

"William was hard working, intelligent, and a very kind man. Our family knew him and he was well respected throughout Sitka," Sitka Mayor Mim McConnell said in a statement. "William and the Diaz brothers will be missed. One day the landslides will be cleaned up, but Sitka will never be the same."

The National Weather Service recorded 2.57 inches of rain falling on Sitka over 6 hours by around 10 a.m., when the landslides occurred. There were six landslides in all, and a sinkhole also opened up, the city said.

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