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Because of the hazards of searching an unstable area, a geologist from the state transportation department was brought in to conduct a preliminary assessment, clearing some areas of the slide for ground searches. But authorities warned of a threat of additional landslides.

The slide — estimated to be 450 feet (137 meters) wide — occurred during rain and a windstorm. Wrangell received about 2 inches of rain from early Monday until late evening, with wind gusts up to 60 mph at higher elevations, said Aaron Jacobs, a National Weather Service hydrologist and meteorologist in Juneau.

Wrangell is one of the oldest non-Alaska Native settlements in the state, founded in 1811 when Russians began trading with Tlingits, according to a state database of Alaska communities. Indigenous people long lived in the area before outside contact. Tlingits, Russians, the British and Americans all accounted for historical influences on Wrangell.

Timber once was a major economic driver, but that has shifted to commercial fishing. Among its notables were Old West lawman Wyatt Earp, who served as temporary marshal for 10 days while he traveled to the Klondike, and naturist John Muir.