This story is free to read.

Official: 3 men missing in Alaska landslide presumed dead

The Gary Paxton Industrial Park Administration Building is surrounded by rain water, mud and debris after landslides Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2015 in Sitka, Alaska. Homes in the town have been flooded, and there were reports of residents not being able to reach their homes or leave their neighborhood, said a spokesman for the state Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management. (James Poulson/The Daily Sitka Sentinel via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT The Gary Paxton Industrial Park Administration Building is surrounded by rain water, mud and debris after landslides Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2015 in Sitka, Alaska. Homes in the town have been flooded, and there were reports of residents not being able to reach their homes or leave their neighborhood, said a spokesman for the state Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management. (James Poulson/The Daily Sitka Sentinel via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT

By Associated Press August 19, 2015 1 min read

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) – Officials say the three men missing in an Alaska landslide are presumed dead.

Sitka fire spokeswoman Sara Peterson said late Tuesday night that the search will be a “body recovery effort” once it’s safe for crews to dig through the debris.

A landslide described as a sea of logs, mud and debris is believed to have trapped the three who were missing Tuesday from a neighborhood in the Alaska coastal town of Sitka.

Peterson says crews were not able to dig at the site Tuesday because of unstable terrain.

She tells The Associated Press that operations were suspended until a geologist assesses the stability of the slide area Wednesday morning.

She says that the missing men are presumed dead and the search will be one of body recovery – a determination based, in part, “from the force of the slide and that kind of impact.”