Emily Schwing, special to Alaska Public Media
Wildfire Forces Closure Of Section Of Parks Highway Overnight
More than 500 acres of land are on fire roughly 20 miles west of Fairbanks along the George Parks Highway. The Skinny’s Road Fire, as it’s known, jumped a containment line overnight Wednesday and prompted an overnight closure of the Parks Highway between mileposts 317 and 344.
Download Audio
Fire Danger Prompts Indefinite Ban On Fireworks, Wood Cutting In Fairbanks
There will be no fireworks on the Fourth of July in Fairbanks. Extreme fire conditions brought the state Fire Marshall to Fairbanks on Thursday. He joined North Star Borough Mayor Luke Hopkins at a press conference to announce an indefinite ban on personal fireworks and local wood cutting.
Download Audio
Fire Danger Remains High Across State
Weather forecasts across the state are calling for continued hot and dry weather and fire danger statewide remains significant. Five hotshot crews have been flown to Fairbanks from Oregon.
Download Audio
New Bike Share Program Comes To Fairbanks
A ribbon cutting ceremony last week marked the beginning of a new bike share program in Fairbanks.
Download Audio
Wildlife Troopers Investigate Moose Calf’s Death
Alaska Wildlife Troopers are investigating the death of a moose calf on Fort Greely near Delta Junction.
New Deal Proposed For Possible Chena Hot Springs Expansion
The Fairbanks North Star Borough Mayor is proposing a new deal that would allow Chena Hot Springs to expand. But first it has to be approved by the assembly. It’s unclear whether assembly members will support it.
Download Audio
UAF Professors Collaborate To Develop Engineering School In Mongolia
A group of University of Alaska, Fairbanks Professors will develop an engineering school in Mongolia over the next few years. UAF signed a contract this spring with the American University of Mongolia in that country’s capital, where the new school will be based.
Download Audio
Air Force Allowing Another Month Of Public Comment On Draft EIS
The Air Force will give Alaska’s leaders and the public an extra month to compile their comments on a draft environmental impact statement released last month.
Download Audio
Weather Helps Firefighters Battling Bitter Creek Blaze
Weather is cooperating with crews fighting the Bitter Creek fire along the Alaska Highway, 30 milres southeast of Tok. The 2300 acre fire was ignited by lightning. It’s now estimated to be within one mile of the highway.
Air Force Releases Draft Environmental Impact Statement on Proposal to Relocate F-16s
A draft Environmental Impact Statement released by the Air Force Friday recommends downsizing Eielson Air Force Base for cost savings, but Alaska’s leaders argue the document ignores requests for cost reduction estimates and fails to consider the local impact.
Download Audio
89 Bears Killed As Part Of Predator Control Program
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game took 89 bears this month as part of a predator control program approved by the Board of Game last year. The efforts are meant to encourage the growth of a struggling moose population in Southwest Alaska.
Download Audio
UAF Says Tuition, Research Funding Unlikely To Offset Rising Costs
The University of Alaska Fairbanks says tuition and research funding are unlikely to increase enough in the coming year to offset rising costs. In a memo, Vice Chancellor Pat Pitney says UAF will face significant budget issues in fiscal year 2014, starting July first. Pitney says those issue are manageable through increasing non-state revenue and decreasing spending. UAF’s leadership is also soliciting ideas from faculty and staff who are invited to submit suggestions to an online suggestion box.
Download Audio
Ice Jam Above Fort Yukon Loosens
A massive ice jam 12 miles upriver from Fort Yukon partially let loose early this morning. National Weather Service Hydrologist Ed Plumb says the ice sheet hasn’t broken entirely, but water backed up behind it is starting to move downriver.
Download Audio
Ice Jam Above Fort Yukon Could Mean Disaster
A massive sheet of winter ice is holding back hundreds of thousands of gallons of silty Yukon River ice roughly 12 miles upriver from Fort Yukon.
Download Audio
Yukon River-Area Villages Voice Concern Over Flooding Threat
Other villages in the middle Yukon River region are bracing for high water and breakup-related flooding as the weather starts to warm in interior Alaska.
Download Audio
Second Largest Flood on Record Hits Eagle as Yukon Breaks Up
Ice on the Yukon River at Eagle began to move early Friday morning resulting in the second worst flood on record since a devastating flood wiped out the community’s waterfront and a nearby Alaska Native village in 2009. Damage this year was minimal in comparison and residents are relieved.
Interior Rivers Begin To Break Up
Break up is starting to happen on Interior rivers. The Yukon River ice began moving early this morning at Eagle. It jammed and caused some flooding of low lying homes and roads. Six homes and a handful of sheds have been hit by truck size chunks of ice.
Download Audio
UAF Cancels Popular Recycling Program
In June, the University of Alaska Fairbanks will discontinue its recycling program. It’s a cost cutting measure, but it also comes in response to what the University sees as a lack of action by the Fairbanks North Star Borough.
Download Audio
Land Exchange Between Fairbanks Borough, Local Resort Hits Snag
For nearly a decade, the Fairbanks North Star Borough and Chena Hot Springs Resort have been working on a land exchange sale. The Resort would buy 1480 acres in exchange for a series of easements that allow access to neighboring Borough property, which includes access to land popular for recreation. Last fall, the Assembly passed an ordinance to approve the sale. The deal is at an impasse, because neither side can agree to the value of the property.
Download Audio
Eagle Residents Prepare as Breakup Draws Near
National Weather Service Hydrologist Ed Plumb says breakup-related flood potential is moderate throughout the state.
Download Audio