When a storm exposes human remains in Barrow, there isn’t an established protocol. They are usually given to the federally recognized Native Village of Barrow for repatriation.

Permafrost thaw and storms are drivers.

This year was one of the warmest and wettest in recorded history, and permafrost thaw is causing the ground at the mass gravesite to sink.

In villages like Kongiganak, communities have stopped burying their dead because, as the permafrost melts, the oldest part of their cemetery is sinking.