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.”

3 missing persons in Sitka landslide ID’d and presumed dead

Three people are missing after heavy rain triggered a series of landslides in Sitka Tuesday morning. Governor Bill Walker plans to be in the city Wednesday to visit the affected areas.

3 People Missing In Sitka Landslide

Four people are believed missing after rain triggered a series of landslides in Sitka early Tuesday morning. Recovery efforts have been suspended while officials wait for the affected slopes to stabilize. Download Audio

A short history of Alaska LGBT rights

Alaskans voted in 1998 to define marriage in the state constitution as only between a man and a woman. Now that the U.S. Supreme Court has invalidated that definition, Alaska and the entire country has marriage equality. To some it may seem like things are changing fast, but Alaska’s fight for gay rights began half a lifetime ago. Download Audio

Shell Gets Final Approval To Drill Into Oil-Bearing Rock in the Chukchi

The Interior Department gave final approval to Shell Oil to drill into oil-bearing rocks at the company’s “Burger J” drilling site. The company has until late September to complete this summer’s exploratory drilling. Download Audio

Bethel Preschool Trashed by Vandals

Vandals trashed preschool classrooms and smashed windows in 13 of the Lower Kuskokwim School District’s vehicles over the weekend. Download Audio

Dispatch From The Couch: Google Trekker Lets You ‘Hike’ the Chilkoot Trail

A hundred years ago, to hike to the Klondike gold fields via the Chilkoot Trail meant a grueling trek carrying a required one ton of supplies, enough to last a year. Soon armchair hikers can breeze along the 33-mile trail virtually, in a few minutes, using Google’s Street View. Download Audio

Dead herring, poison mussels found on Unalaska shorelines

Hundreds of dead herring washed up on Front Beach in downtown Unalaska on Tuesday.

Fiery Testimony, Complex Problems at Mat-Su Visit From VA Secretary

A listening session held Thursday night in Wasilla by the head of the Department of Veterans Affairs was dominated by complaints about the healthcare system for veterans.

Governor Nominates Elizabeth Peratrovich As The Face of the $10 Bill

The Walker-Mallott administration has nominated a Tlingit civil-rights leader to be on the new $10 bill. Download Audio

Sentencing begins in Anchorage hit-and-run cyclist case

The first segment of Alexandra Ellis’ sentencing hearing took place Friday afternoon in Anchorage. Ellis pled guilty to hitting and killing cyclist Jeff Dusenbury last summer, when she was 17. Many community members disagree with the plea deal reached by the state this spring.

Earthquake swarm hits Yakutat

About 30 earthquakes have hit the Yakutat area this week. The Gulf of Alaska city, about 250 miles northwest of Juneau, is in a fault zone and quakes aren’t unusual. Download Audio

Mat-Su Vets Rail Against VA During Secretary’s Visit

A listening session held Thursday night in Wasilla by the head of the Department of Veterans Affairs was dominated by complaints about the healthcare system for veterans in Alaska.

Permafrost Carbon Takes A Trip to Davy Jones’ Locker

It’s been widely accepted in the science community that melting permafrost means more carbon in the atmosphere. But a new study has identified a quirk in that process. Download Audio

Bethel Council Nixes City-Run Liquor Store Vote in October

There will not be a vote this October for Bethel to go into local option status and pursue opening a city-run liquor store. The Bethel City Council by a vote of five to one rejected sending the vote to citizens. Download Audio

Sled Dog Fatally Gored By Muskox Outside Nome

A grimly familiar sight to Nome dog owners returned with the fatal goring of a local musher’s dog by a bull muskox Wednesday.

President Obama: Alaskans Are On the Front Lines Of Climate Change

Alaska is ground zero for climate change -- that's the message of a new video issued by the White House discussing president Obama's upcoming visit to the Last Frontier.

City Hires Homelessness Coordinator Using State Funds

The city's new mayor is taking quick steps towards leveraging State resources that may fix what many in Anchorage see as an intractable urban issue.

Shell ready to drill for Arctic oil as delayed icebreaker arrives

Shell’s wayward icebreaker made it to the company’s Arctic Ocean drilling site Tuesday. The arrival of the Fennica after a month’s delay means the company could get to drill for oil beneath the Chukchi Sea this summer. Download Audio

Looking (And Listening) For Alaska’s Rarest Whale

Researchers are cruising the Gulf of Alaska on the lookout for one of the world’s rarest animals: the North Pacific right whale. Download Audio

New York-based investors buy majority stake in Ravn

New York investors are now majority owners of the Ravn Air group, which mostly serves rural Alaska. Download Audio