News

All news stories, regardless of topic (local, statewide + national news stories, as well as Talk of Alaska, Alaska News Nightly, Alaska Insight, Alaska Economic Report). Some news stories may also have other categories marked, which will also put them on a subpage. Not all news stories will fall into a subpage.

iceberg in a lake

Top Alaska tourist attraction Mendenhall Glacier to hit capacity for visitors by late summer

Businesses are facing limits on how many tours have permits to visit the area. It stings, said the general manager of one tourism company.
musk oxen near Nome

Troopers remind hunters of harvesting obligations after reports of animals wasted near Nome

State law says all edible meat must be salvaged from big game animals except brown bears, wolves and wolverines. Any furbearer must be harvested.
a building with a mountain in the background

Sitka Fine Arts Camp files rare immigration lawsuit in support of theater manager

The camp, which operates the 145-year-old campus of Sheldon Jackson College, was seeking a technical expert.
a weather map

Should we invest more in weather forecasting? It may save your life.

A pair of economists calculate that "making forecasts 50% more accurate would save 2,200 lives per year," citing major improvements in the last century.
Craig George

Craig George, renowned Arctic wildlife biologist and whale expert, missing in rafting accident

A veteran Arctic scientist who was one of the world’s most distinguished whale experts was missing after a rafting accident in Interior Alaska last week.
an anchorage police car is parked in a parking lot

1 dead, 5 injured in motor homes’ head-on Seward Highway collision

Monday afternoon's fatal collision south of Anchorage closed the highway for more than four hours.
The Best Western Golden Lion Hotel

This former Anchorage hotel is weeks away from reopening as permanent, low-income housing 

It’s been the subject of local controversies and shifting plans since the city bought it in 2020.
A long line of people on bikes. At the front, two people on bikes have toddlers riding right behind their handlebars.

Cyclists flood Anchorage streets for the second annual ‘Critical Mass’ ride

The large group bike ride aimed to raise awareness of the need for more cycling infrastructure.
A man in a kayak near lines of yellow floats

Fuel vault likely led to oil spill at Anchorage’s University Lake

The popular off-leash dog park remains closed as cleanup continues.
proposed Sitka airport expansion

Sitka’s airport expansion set for takeoff this fall

Sitka’s airport terminal is overdue for an expansion, and the city anticipates that federal funding will help get the project off the ground this fall.
a train

Skagway rail workers vote ‘overwhelmingly’ to authorize strike

Rail workers at White Pass and Yukon Route, Skagway’s biggest employer and a major tourist attraction, have voted to authorize a strike.
a Petersburg fire

Petersburg Catholic church burns in 10-hour fire

Petersburg’s Catholic church, St. Catherine of Siena, caught fire Thursday afternoon in a blaze that continued for nearly 10 hours.
Karluk

Thousands respond to Karluk’s viral ad for cost-free living

The community is looking to pay two families with four children each to move to the village in an effort to get state funding and re-establish a school.
a 2022 Alaska ballot

Questions on minimum wage, paid sick leave and campaign funding could be heading to Alaska voters

Lt. Gov. Dahlstrom has until early September to certify whether three proposals will go to petition-gathering stage.
Fukushima protesters

Backlash builds as Japan prepares to release wastewater from Fukushima nuclear plant

Japan first announced plans to discharge treated water from Fukushima into the sea in 2018, in a controlled decades-long process.
A wideshot of a boat harbor in front of a snow-capped mountain with a small dock fire smoking.

Whittier officials say fuel dock operational after closing due to 4th of July fire

The fire started on Tuesday, sinking a boat, closing the dock and forcing two people to be medevaced with injuries.
A house that's under construction.

2 Anchorage Assembly members want to encourage more affordable housing with a dramatic zoning rewrite

“Affordable housing solves all our problems,” said Assembly member Kevin Cross.

Troopers identify Yukon River body as missing Marshall woman

Kimberly Fitka O’Domin’s body was found about 30 miles upriver from Emmonak on June 27, but she wasn’t publicly identified until Thursday.
a whale

NOAA is looking for 2 humpback whales entangled in fishing gear near Juneau

The whales were spotted Monday at Fritz Cove and Taku Inlet, entangled in a crab pot line and gillnet gear respectively.
wine bottles

More outdoor seating is coming at Alaska’s bars, taprooms and restaurants, but it may take time

Regulatory changes by the state aren’t on track to reach completion until after summer, despite the hopes of alcohol licensees.