Overview

Date last known alive: December 2, 2020
Location: Beach Road, Haines, Alaska
Age: 23
NamUs: MP76235
Haines Borough Police case: 20-000182
Status: Missing; presumed deceased following the catastrophic Beach Road landslide.

Jenae Elisabeth Larson was a 23-year-old kindergarten teacher who disappeared on December 2, 2020, when a massive rain-triggered landslide struck the Beach Road area of Haines, Alaska. The slide destroyed the property where Larson was living and also left homeowner David Simmons, 30, missing. Despite an extensive search involving local responders, Alaska State Troopers, the U.S. Coast Guard, search-and-rescue teams and volunteers, neither Larson nor Simmons was recovered.

Main circumstances: A historic rainstorm triggered a roughly 600-foot-wide landslide that destroyed several homes along Beach Road. Larson and Simmons were the only two people who remained unaccounted for after four others initially reported missing were located safely. Dangerous terrain, continued rainfall and the threat of additional landslides eventually forced authorities to suspend active search operations.

Detailed Case Breakdown

Jenae Elisabeth Larson: Missing After the 2020 Haines, Alaska Landslide

Brief Case Summary

Date last known alive: December 2, 2020
Location: Beach Road, Haines, Alaska
Age: 23
NamUs: MP76235
Haines Borough Police case: 20-000182
Status: Missing; presumed deceased following the catastrophic Beach Road landslide.

Jenae Elisabeth Larson was a 23-year-old kindergarten teacher who disappeared on December 2, 2020, when a massive rain-triggered landslide struck the Beach Road area of Haines, Alaska. The slide destroyed the property where Larson was living and also left homeowner David Simmons, 30, missing. Despite an extensive search involving local responders, Alaska State Troopers, the U.S. Coast Guard, search-and-rescue teams and volunteers, neither Larson nor Simmons was recovered.

Main circumstances: A historic rainstorm triggered a roughly 600-foot-wide landslide that destroyed several homes along Beach Road. Larson and Simmons were the only two people who remained unaccounted for after four others initially reported missing were located safely. Dangerous terrain, continued rainfall and the threat of additional landslides eventually forced authorities to suspend active search operations.

A Young Teacher Returns Home to Haines

Jenae Larson had deep roots in Haines. She attended the Haines School District from pre-kindergarten through 12th grade before leaving Alaska to attend the University of Idaho. She graduated in May 2020 with a degree in elementary education and returned to her hometown to begin her career as a kindergarten teacher at the same school system in which she had grown up.

Her first year as a teacher came during the COVID-19 pandemic, adding unusual challenges to the beginning of her career. Haines School District Superintendent Roy Getchell nevertheless described Larson as exceptionally talented with children and an important new member of the district’s teaching staff.

Historic Rainfall Hits Haines

In the days leading up to December 2, 2020, Southeast Alaska was being battered by extraordinarily heavy rainfall. Haines experienced widespread flooding, road damage and multiple landslides as the ground became increasingly saturated. Contemporary reporting described approximately 10 inches of rain falling during a two-day period.

Larson was living in an apartment associated with David Simmons’ property on Beach Road. Simmons was a well-known Haines resident involved in local economic development.

On December 2, a massive section of mountainside above Beach Road gave way. The landslide, reported to be about 600 feet wide, rushed through the residential area, destroying Simmons’ home and other structures before debris continued toward the water.

Larson and Simmons could not be located afterward.

Jenae Larson and David Simmons Reported Missing

Six people were initially feared missing following the disaster. Four were soon located and confirmed safe, leaving Larson and Simmons as the two people still unaccounted for. Haines Mayor Douglas Olerud publicly confirmed their identities on December 3.

Search-and-rescue resources poured into Haines. Responders included Alaska State Troopers, the U.S. Coast Guard, Alaska National Guard personnel, Juneau Mountain Rescue, search-dog teams, local emergency crews and more than 100 volunteers.

The search was extraordinarily difficult. Continued rainfall left the mountainside unstable, while mud, trees and debris covered the slide area. Searchers examined shoreline debris, traveled by boat and conducted aerial searches, but entering portions of the primary debris field on foot was considered dangerously unsafe.

Search Operations Suspended

By December 7, Alaska State Troopers announced that active search operations for Larson and Simmons were being suspended.

The decision did not mean authorities had determined exactly where their remains were located. Rather, continued rain, unstable ground and the possibility of additional landslides created an unacceptable danger to search teams. Officials said new evidence or information could potentially change the situation.

Haines Mayor Douglas Olerud told the community that Larson and Simmons were more than likely deceased and explained that authorities could not justify risking additional lives by sending personnel into the unstable slide area.

The Alaska Department of Public Safety subsequently included both Larson and Simmons in its missing-person records. Larson’s Haines Borough Police Department case number is 20-000182.

What Happened to Jenae Larson?

The available evidence overwhelmingly connects Larson’s disappearance to the December 2 landslide rather than to a suspected act of violence.

According to contemporary reporting, Larson was believed to have been at or near her Beach Road residence when the mountainside collapsed. The structure was destroyed, and she was not seen afterward. Simmons also disappeared from the same property.

Later local reporting referred to Larson and Simmons as having died or been killed in the landslide, and memorial projects were created for both victims. However, Larson continues to appear in official missing-person records because her remains have not publicly been reported as recovered or identified.

There is no publicly documented basis to characterize Larson’s disappearance as a homicide.

Latest Publicly Available Case Information

As of August 17, 2026, Jenae Larson continues to appear in Alaska’s active missing-person data under Haines Police Department case 20-000182. Her NamUs record, MP76235, also remains available as a missing-person case.

The publicly accessible records reviewed do not show that Larson’s remains have been recovered, that a suspect has been identified, or that authorities have converted the matter into a criminal or homicide investigation.

The Alaska Department of Public Safety explains that missing-person bulletins are generally created when public dissemination could realistically help locate someone or determine what led to a disappearance. Cases arising from known catastrophic events such as avalanches, plane crashes or similar disasters may therefore remain documented without receiving the same type of bulletin used in unexplained disappearances.

The most recent case-directory information reviewed in August 2026 likewise continued to categorize Larson as missing and listed the Haines Borough Police Department as the primary investigating agency.

Remembering Jenae Larson

Larson’s disappearance deeply affected Haines, particularly the school community where she had only recently begun the career she had worked toward.

Her family and community later developed plans for a playground at Haines School in her memory. The project was inspired by Larson’s own desire to improve the play area used by young students.

After years of fundraising, planning and community support, Jenae Larson’s Playground opened in August 2024. The project became a permanent memorial beside the school where Larson had once been a student and later returned as a kindergarten teacher.

More than five years after the landslide, the official missing-person record remains open. The circumstances of Larson’s disappearance are strongly associated with one of the most destructive natural disasters in Haines’ recent history, while the absence of recovered remains leaves her formally listed among Alaska’s missing.