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As Alaska virus hunters look for sings of omicron in the state, Alaska's Chief Medical Officer Dr. Anne Zink says overcoming coronavirus fatigue is more important than ever.

When a string of Yup'ik elders from St. Lawrence Island, Alaska, all received the same cancer diagnoses, officials initially shrugged it off as a bizarre medical mystery. But not long after, a different village reported an increase in unusual cancer symptoms as well.

A case in California marks omicron's arrival in the U.S. Cases have been found in more than 20 countries around the world, less than a week after the worrying new variant was first identified.

Alaska's top doctor considers the potential impact of the omicron variant. Also, Sitka begins the challenging work of planning for the 250th anniversary of the United States. And airmen work to restore the star that lights up an Anchorage mountain at the darkest time of year.

In two major coronavirus relief bills, Congress sent Alaska tribes huge sums in direct payments. But the bounty was uneven: While the largest Alaska tribe got $6,000 per person, one tribe that reported having only three members received nearly $1 million per person.

So far, scientists have limited information about omicron. But several red flags suggest that this strain of coronavirus could quickly cause surges in many parts of the world and could be the most contagious one known.

In an announcement posted on social media, Rep. Christopher Kurka, R-Wasilla, criticized Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s health mandates issued early in the pandemic.

A federal judge on Monday blocked President Joe Biden’s administration from enforcing a coronavirus vaccine mandate on thousands of health care workers in 10 states, including Alaska, that had brought the first legal challenge against the requirement.

There are plans to redevelop the site of the former Bureau of Indian Affairs facility that was open for 43 years. But sensitivity toward the legacy of abuse and trauma and recent discoveries of graves at Canadian boarding schools have caused local officials to tread carefully before breaking ground.

“Tule geese are among the first migrants to come down across the Gulf of Alaska toward California,” said a wildlife biologist. “So we watch with bated breath every year to watch them come down and see what they’re doing.”