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.”

Intervention 2020 group pushes for incarcerating homeless, a plan that may be unconstitutional

Nearly thirty hours of in-person public testimony on a city plan to purchase property  for a treatment center, housing and other homelessness services wrapped up last week. While the assembly says they’ve received thousands of emails in support of the plan, the majority of hundreds of in-person testifiers were against it. Some of the negative testimony was fueled by a conservative opposition group called Intervention 2020.

Mertarvik’s lack of a commercial airport may have already cost lives

The DOT said it would only fund one airport between Newtok and Mertarvik.

Gov. Dunleavy names first two members to high-stakes Redistricting Board

The board is charged with rewriting the legislative boundaries based on federal census results.

Petersburg mourns four killed in crash

Four people died in a vehicle wreck south of Petersburg. It’s believed the late model SUV went off Mitkof Highway sometime Monday night.

The state is starting to buy land for a wider, safer ‘KGB’ Road. But not everybody is in a selling mood.

The Alaska Department of Transportation is starting to make offers on private land it needs to widen a section of Knik-Goose Bay Road on the edge of Wasilla. The road has seen ever-increasing traffic on a two-lane design intended for fewer vehicles.
A grey building on a dirt road

Stebbins teacher arrested after sexually explicit chats with girl

Lon Dean Gillas, 65, is alleged to have used his Google account with the Bering Strait School District to chat about sex and BDSM with a 16-year-old girl, and to ask her for explicit photos.

Anchorage announces new COVID-19 testing sites

The five sites will be free to the public and will not require a doctor's referral.

Two Anchorage police officers indicted, suspended in alleged assault of man who frequently recorded police

An Anchorage police officer has been indicted for assaulting a man while serving him with a bicycle citation in 2019 and, along with another officer, on charges of tampering with public records.

When it comes to COVID-19, Alaska just had its worst week yet

State health officials predict the number of COVID-19 infections will double every 23 days if people don't take more preventative measures.

Dunleavy says COVID-19 mandates should be up to local governments

“I know there’s a lot of people that would love for me to mandate masks, bar closures, restaurant closures,” Dunleavy said during a news conference on Tuesday. “But it simply doesn’t make sense"
An Alaska State Trooper cruiser parked on Nome’s Front Street in January 2015.

Man killed by bear while clearing trail near Hope

Fur found in the area indicates it was likely a brown bear that attacked the man Wednesday.

With virus funds, Newtok will build more homes in Mertarvik

Despite the CARES Act money, there are still questions about equity and efficiency when it comes to relocating the remaining residents.

‘Into the Wild’ bus to find home at Fairbanks museum

Alaska DNR said that the Museum of the North met its conditions for a site to display the bus, which included avoiding the "specter of profiteering."
alaska canadian border sig

The rules for crossing the Canadian border into Alaska just got even stricter

Starting July 31, people driving to Alaska from the Lower 48 will only be able to enter Canada through one of five border crossings

Anchorage shuts down bars, restaurants for indoor service

Bars and nightclubs will be closed to dine-in service. Emergency Order 15 also limits indoor gatherings to 15 people and outdoor gatherings with food and drinks to 25 people. Outdoor gatherings without food and drinks are limited to 50 people.
A balding white man in a suit speaks into a mcrophone at a wooden table

Knopp remembered as ‘one-of-a-kind leader’ in Alaska

State Rep. Gary Knopp, who died in a plane crash on Friday, became a pivotal legislator during his two terms, who was recalled by friends and former legislative colleagues as plainspoken and friendly.

Charges: Meth-fueled hallucinations led to Eagle River’s neighbor-on-neighbor shooting spree

An Eagle River man is charged with shooting his sleeping neighbor through the neighbor’s bedroom window while on meth early Thursday.
Two bearded men pose in the Mr. Fur Face Beard Competition.

What’s it take to win Alaska’s fiercely contentious beard competition? | INDIE ALASKA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=To2JBuFR2VQ Bearded men and women from around the country gather in Anchorage every winter during the Fur Rendezvous to compete in the Mr. Fur Face...

Deal gives Atlanta company control of Anchorage TV news

The Anchorage Daily News reported Saturday that GCI Inc. and Atlanta-based Gray Television Inc. announced the agreement for Gray to buy most assets of Anchorage CBS station KTVA.