A body discovered Sunday on a beach near Brevig Mission is that of a 26-year-old man who went missing in November, when a massive Bering Sea storm battered Alaska's west coast, Alaska State Troopers say.
Teller resident Kyle Komok was last seen riding a four-wheeler north from Teller, toward a spit of land jutting north into the sea, troopers said. Witnesses said waves, churned by the powerful storm, could be seen crashing over Komok as he headed in the direction of Brevig Mission.
Searchers went door to door and scoured the area for two days but high winds kept them from launching boats. A rescue coordinator told the Daily News that much of the village was relocated to higher ground at the time due to flooding danger. When the weather subsided, the villagers found the spit washed out about halfway across and searched with boats. They found no sign of Komok at the time, troopers said.
Eight months later, on Sunday, a resident of nearby Brevig Mission found a body washed up on a beach about a mile east of that Inupiat community. The remains were flown to a medical examiner in Anchorage to make identification, troopers said.
Dental records confirmed Wednesday that the body is Komok's, troopers said.
Brevig Mission is about five miles northwest of Teller and 65 miles northwest of Nome.
Reach Casey Grove at casey.grove@adn.com or 257-4589.
By CASEY GROVE
Anchorage Daily News