30-year-old dad who ‘loved his kids very much’ dies in fall on Alaska island

A Kodiak man died after falling while camping on nearby Long Island, Alaska State Troopers reported.

Andrew James Pillans, 30, was reported missing while camping on the island near Kodiak at about 7:45 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 13, troopers said in a dispatch.

Searchers found his body at about 2:30 p.m. the next day, troopers said. He had died of injuries sustained in a fall.

A spokesperson said Pillans likely fell off a 100-foot cliff to a rocky shoreline below, KMXT reported. Foul play is not suspected.

His family remembered Pillans as a devoted father to his four children, KTUU reported. He had recently moved to Alaska from New York to work with his brother.

“He loved his kids very much,” Andrea Pillans told KTUU. The station identified her as his wife while KTMX identified her as his ex-wife.

“He would cater to their every whim,” Angela Pillans told KTUU. “If they wanted to play a game, he would be playing a game with them. If they wanted to go outside, he would be out there. If they wanted to go to the playground, they would be at the playground.”

Kodiak is about 410 miles south of Anchorage.

This story was originally published September 16, 2025 at 10:08 AM with the headline "30-year-old dad who ‘loved his kids very much’ dies in fall on Alaska island."