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The advent of spring is usually good news for Alaskans who have suffered from a severe winter, but an early thaw proved catastrophic for a small town.

A rapid warm up in May caused the mighty Yukon River to rise more than 37 feet above flood stage, and sent ice chunks as big as houses crashing into Eagle. Nearly every riverfront building, including the town clinic, was crushed in the community in eastern Alaska. At least 46 of the area’s 125 residents were homeless.

“People are just hurting and upset at what happened,” Terry DePue, pastor of Eagle Bible Chapel, said in the aftermath of the disaster. “They’re really at their wit’s end.”

DePue’s church has participated in Operation Christmas Child for a number of years, sending their shoe box gifts up river to Fairbanks, and he knew that Samaritan's Purse often responds in the wake of disasters.

“We immediately thought of Samaritan’s Purse,” DePue said. “We began praying about it, and some members of our church contacted them.”

We decided to rebuild 13 houses that were destroyed or badly damaged by the ice and water. Materials and volunteers began arriving the first week in July.

“We’re so thankful that you’ve come to help,” DePue said.

Samaritan’s Purse President Franklin Graham visited Eagle in early July to survey the damage. He spoke briefly at Eagle Bible Church.

“We’re here to work in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ,” Graham said. “We want to share the hope of the Gospel with those who have lost so much.”

As the work began, the weather again loomed large. Our staff and volunteers were in a race to finish the homes before the Alaskan winter set in.

After seeing God’s people respond to the need, Pastor DuPee was confident the work would be completed on time.

“We’re looking forward to seeing what great things God can do in a small community like Eagle,” he said.