Our Washington, DC, correspondent reflects on the Jan. 6 Capitol riot
It’s the one-year anniversary of a dark day in America’s political life — the storming of the U.S. Capitol, by a mob of former President Donald Trump supporters trying to keep him in the White House despite his election loss.
Anchorage School District reduces required COVID isolation to 5 days
The change is in line with new CDC guidelines.
What we know about the symptoms — and the severity — of the omicron variant
Researchers are looking at data from U.S. cases to determine if the variant causes milder disease. Even if the answer is yes, they say, rates of hospitalization could be high during the surge.
Alaska Airlines to reduce flights due to omicron staffing shortage
Alaska Airlines will reduce departures by 10% through the end of January due to omicron-related staffing challenges, the company said in a statement Thursday.
Anchorage Assembly members concerned over city’s communication, readiness for omicron
Assembly members have been increasingly vocal about concerns the city isn’t doing an adequate job communicating about how to get tested as cases rise quickly. The lack of attendance at the meeting added to a wider concern that the city’s health department isn’t prepared for the anticipated omicron surge that has already caused significant problems for schools and businesses in other cities.
US hospitals seeing different kind of COVID surge this time
Hospitals are dealing with serious staff shortages because so many health care workers are getting sick with the fast-spreading variant.
State prioritizes new construction for Napakiak school threatened by erosion
Napakiak’s existing school is within 64 feet of an eroding riverbank.
They believe in Trump’s ‘Big Lie.’ Here’s why it’s been so hard to dispel
The resilience of the "Big Lie" is prompting consternation and creative efforts to reach those who remain adamant — despite all evidence to the contrary — that the 2020 presidential vote was rigged.
Alaska’s courts set to resume in-person jury trials
ave been put on hold sporadically since April 2020. The pauses led to a backlog of cases and concerns about defendants’ right to a speedy trial. It also put pressure on judges and lawyers to resolve criminal cases in other ways, like plea deals.
President Biden blasts Trump for ‘spreading a web of lies’ in a Jan. 6 speech
President Biden marked the anniversary of the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol with a scathing speech in which he strongly condemned the violence and said his predecessor, Donald Trump, "has created and spread a web of lies about the 2020 election."
Ed Rasmuson remembered for putting Alaska ahead of politics
Alaska lost a champion and a colossal philanthropist when retired banker Ed Rasmuson died Tuesday at age 81.
University of Alaska students sue to protect fund for scholarships, medical education
Four University of Alaska students are suing the state government in an attempt to maintain a fund that pays for scholarships.
Bethel residents donate food and music to a new batch of stranded travelers at Grant Aviation
Many travelers who had been stuck in Bethel for weeks over the holidays have finally made it home to their villages on Grant Aviation flights. But now, there's a new batch of passengers stranded.
Southeast Alaska’s ever-deepening snow ‘a real problem and a real hassle’
Winter weather is in full effect across Alaska, but unusually high snow accumulation is testing Southeast. Usually some snow melts between storms, but that’s not happening this winter.
State tribal recognition initiative surpasses signature goal
Officials with the effort say they’ve collected more than 53,000 supporting signatures.
Authorities locate mother of baby found in box in Fairbanks
Authorities have located the mother of a baby found abandoned in a cardboard box in frigid conditions in Fairbanks last week, Alaska State Troopers reported Wednesday.
12 photos of the wreckage from Mat-Su’s powerful windstorm
As winds subside, Alaskans in the Mat-Su are assessing damage and cleaning up the wreckage. Here's what that looks like.
Alaska economists are pondering the state’s labor market churn
"It is the strangest, most chaotic, mysterious, and often seemingly contradictory trends that are going on in the labor market all at the same time," said state economist Neal Fried.
Commission votes to increase Alaska legislators’ salaries but lower overall compensation
Alaska lawmakers would receive significantly higher salaries but reduced overall compensation under a plan that could go into effect soon. And that’s raising concern with at least some lawmakers from both major parties.
The CDC says a test to get out of COVID isolation is not needed, resisting pushback
Despite pressure from health experts who advocated for adding a testing requirement, the agency is standing by its original guidance that a negative test is not needed for people who are fever-free and whose symptoms have improved.