Top Stories

News stories, radio and TV episodes that warrant one of six spots on our homepage. The homepage is in chronological order of publication date, so stories are moved off the homepage as more are categorized “top stories.”

‘We crossed a line today’: Dunleavy orders statewide shelter in place, limits travel

People can still go outside, under the new mandate, but they must remain six feet or more away from individuals not in their households.

Anchorage officials: We need your COVID-19 protective gear, including homemade masks, ‘immediately’

Anchorage officials are again asking people, businesses and medical providers to donate protective equipment "immediately," including homemade masks. Despite community donations so far, Anchorage continues to face a shortage of personal protective equipment, the city says.

Coronavirus fears fuel assault on Bering Sea fishing boat, federal prosecutors charge

Maurice Young was a housekeeper and galley assistant on the 235-foot SeaFreeze America. A day before the assault, the victim -- a processor on the ship -- criticized Young “for serving food without gloves,” prosecutors said in a court filing.

Resident of 90-bed Fairbanks center for seniors and rehab tests positive for COVID-19

Foundation Health Partners, which operates the 90-bed Denali Center, said it believes the resident caught the disease from a staff member who also tested positive. After learning of the resident's positive test Friday and consulting with state epidemiologists, the center tested every resident and staff member for COVID-19.

Missing five-year-old Ketchikan boy found dead

On Saturday afternoon, "ground searchers located Jaxson [Brown] deceased and recovered his remains,” troopers said in a statement.

Alaska Airlines Center set to house 150 patients as planners prepare for surge of cases

Anchorage officials say they hope that the former sports center won't need to be used, but that they want to be prepared just in case.

Third Alaskan dies of COVID-19 as case count rises to 114

The deceased patient was 73 years old and had been admitted to the hospital almost a week ago.

UAA study: To prevent deaths, Alaska will need strict interventions for many months

A new academic study of the coronavirus’s likely impacts on Alaska is clear: to prevent thousands of deaths, strict interventions will be necessary for months.

Two Fairbanks medical clinics are related to at least 15 COVID-19 cases, state says

Two medical practices in the same building in Fairbanks are connected to a cluster of COVID-19 cases, according to the Alaska Department of Health...

Fairbanks is now considered Alaska’s coronavirus ‘hot spot’

Alaska health officials are now calling the Fairbanks area the “hot spot” for coronavirus in Alaska. That’s despite more total cases in Anchorage, where there’s also been two deaths, and a higher percentage of cases in Ketchikan relative to that city’s population.

Prudhoe Bay worker tests positive for COVID-19, BP says

The worker is an Alaska resident who had traveled out of state, according to Alaska's health commissioner.

Bristol Bay health corp fires exec after she suggests coronavirus is a political conspiracy

She was fired after several local leaders were outraged by Scotford’s claims, and called on the health corporation to take corrective measures.

Alaska’s confirmed COVID-19 cases grow by 14, two more hospitalized

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Alaska grew to 133 by Tuesday, with two more Alaskans hospitalized.
A white man in a suit speaking at a podium

Planners in Anchorage brace for surge of COVID cases with more hospital space, mortuary preparation

Anticipating more coronavirus cases, officials in Anchorage are racing to bring more medical beds online, scrounging for equipment, and even preparing potential mortuary spaces.

Third resident at Fairbanks long-term care facility tests positive for COVID-19

A third resident has tested positive for COVID-19 at the Denali Center long-term care facility in Fairbanks, according to Foundation Health Partners.

Business bruised by COVID-19? SBA may have a $10,000 grant for you.

The Small Business Administration will provide $10,000 "loan advances" to companies hurt by the coronavirus. But you don’t have to be a traditional company, and you don't have to pay it back.
A boxy building covered with snow

The coronavirus pandemic is devastating Alaska’s budget, and it could cost you your PFD

The Legislature approved a budget last weekend that’s predicted to drain 70 percent of the cash left in the state's primary savings account. And things will be even worse without a substantial increase in the price of oil.

State medical officer encourages Alaskans to wear homemade masks

The number of Alaskans diagnosed with COVID-19 had grown to 147, up from 143 cases a day earlier.

Uncertainty for villages and towns across Alaska as the largest rural carrier, Ravn, grounds almost all of its fleet

Ravn's announcement reverberated through rural communities across the entire state, as residents wondered about how villages would ensure their flow of people, mail, goods and medical supplies amid the pandemic.

‘This is a nightmare now’: Iditarod musher recounts helicopter rescue from flooded trail

What Matthew Failor did not know when he left White Mountain with two other mushers was the relentless wind was pushing ocean water onto the trail ahead.