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The M/V Matanuska will be out of service through March 1 to address issues with the reduction gear system, according to a prepared statement released late Feb. 5 by the Department of Transportation and Public Facilities. The ferry will travel to the Ketchikan shipyard where it can be inspected in a dry dock to determine if further repairs are needed. The Alaska Marine Highway System has refunded fares for passengers that have already booked travel onboard the M/V Matanuska and has assisted with...
Scientists at the University of Alaska Fairbanks have identified a new species of thalattosaur, a marine reptile that lived more than 200 million years ago. The new species, Gunakadeit joseeae, is the most complete thalattosaur ever found in North America and has given paleontologists new insights about the thalattosaurs' family tree, according to a paper published recently in the journal Scientific Reports. Scientists found the fossil near Keku Island near the village of Kake in 2011....
KETCHIKAN, Alaska (AP) _ The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has issued a permit for a cruise ship dock in southeast Alaska, but the dock's opening date is unclear, agency officials said. The permit was issued Tuesday for the 1,300-foot (400-meter), two-berth cruise ship dock in Ward Cove, about 300 miles (480 kilometers) south of Juneau, Ketchikan Daily News reported Thursday. The permit was approved after two months of public comment and four months of review, officials said. The permit was issued to Power Systems & Supplies, owned by Dave and...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Tyson Steele watched his remote cabin go up in flames, mourned the death of his dog and then spent weeks in the Alaska wilderness, bundling up in an makeshift shelter against the subzero temperatures and eating canned food _ unable to reach the outside world. He knew his best chance for rescue would come from worried loved ones sending a plane to check on him. Help came about three weeks later. Steele, 30, was rescued Thursday, apparently in good health, according to Alaska State Troopers. He was waving his arms, an SOS si...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Alaska experienced its warmest year on record, according to federal climate officials. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in its U.S. Climate report said Alaska had a statewide average temperature of 32.2 degrees (0.11 Celsius). That was 6.2 degrees (4.4 Celsius) above the long-term average. It also surpassed the previous record statewide average temperature of 31.9 (-0.06 Celsius), set in 2016, the agency said. Four of the last six years in Alaska have been record warm years, NOAA said. Ten cities e...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A state employee who says she was sexually harassed and physically injured by a supervisor is suing the state for $19 million. Toni Prins, a Kenai juvenile justice worker, also said in her lawsuit that she was given a poor performance review when she complained, the Anchorage Daily News reported. The lawsuit was filed in November. State officials deny that Prins has a valid claim and last month asked that it be dismissed. Prins’ lawsuit claims a supervisor began to harass her in April 2016. She complained to ano...
ANCHORAGE — When Alaskans are summoned for jury service, they fill out and return a questionnaire that allows court personnel to qualify, defer, or excuse them from service. After historically sending these documents in the mail, the court has switched to using email to send them. By November of 2019, courts statewide were sending these jury documents by email. Potential juror email addresses are provided by the Permanent Fund Dividend office, as is all other potential juror information. If the email is not responded to, the court mails a p...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — An eruption at a volcano in Alaska's Aleutian Islands has intensified and the National Weather Service has renewed a warning for passing aircraft. Shishaldin Volcano erupted at 5 a.m. Tuesday, the Alaska Volcano Observatory announced, and sent up an ash cloud to 23,000 feet (7,010 meters). Shortly after 12:30 p.m., the observatory announced the eruption had continued and the ash cloud had reached 27,000 feet (8,230 meters). Wind continued to push the cloud northeast into the eastern Bering Sea and away from jet a...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — With an aging fleet, fewer riders and major budget reductions, the Alaska Marine Highway System is feeling the hurt. Six of the state's 11 ferries have been taken out of service as of Dec. 9 and service to coastal communities has been reduced multiple times. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have said they believe ferries are a vital economic engine for Southeast Alaska, but how to keep that engine running is up for debate. One proposal, or at least the idea of it, has gotten the attention of a number of stakeholder g...
SITKA, Alaska (AP) — A search has been called off for a man missing on a kayak trip outside Sitka, the U.S. Coast Guard announced. Kale Pastel, 36, left on an early morning kayaking trip to Birdsnest Bay. He did not return and he was reported missing, the Coast Guard said. A witness spotted Pastel's kayak on Sunday morning overturned and adrift in Eastern Channel. The witness towed the kayak to Cannon Island. The Coast Guard and Sitka Mountain Rescue launched a search. An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew at 1:15 p.m. launched from Coast Guard A...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) - A new federal law is set to increase the national age limit for tobacco and e-cigarette purchases to 21, which will require Alaska to meet a standard that has already been established in Anchorage. Alaska law currently allows anyone 19 and older to buy tobacco, although Anchorage took legal steps four months ago to raise the age limit to 21, The Anchorage Daily News reported Wednesday. Unless the Alaska Legislatures changes state laws, the new federal law will force an...
JUNEAU – As climate change rapidly alters conditions in southeast Alaska, lower snowpack levels have caused a massive decline of yellow-cedar trees. Without an insulating blanket of snow, the shallow roots of yellow-cedar trees freeze during late spring cold snaps. Left behind is a growing expanse of "ghost forests" of dead yellow-cedars, affecting roughly 678,000 acres (nearly the area of Yosemite National Park). The decay-resistant properties of yellow-cedar allow the trees to remain s...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A project that maintains seismic monitoring stations in Alaska needs more funding to continue fully operating, officials said. Scientists, lawmakers and federal agencies are promoting the permanent installation of the Transportable Array Network, The Anchorage Daily News reported Tuesday. The National Science Foundation project was installed temporarily beginning in 2014. The stations can monitor earthquake activity and track weather, wildfires and volcanoes. The system can also detect North Korean nuclear testing, o...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A Washington state man has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of a woman in a southeast Alaska village two years ago, Alaska State Troopers announced. Isaac Friday, 27, of Waitsburg, Washington, is charged in the 2017 death of Jade Williams, 19. of Kake, a city of 600 on Kupreanof Island about 95 miles (153 kilometers) southwest of Juneau. Deputies from the Walla Wall County Sheriff’s Office on Saturday arrested Friday in Dayton, Washington. Friday is in custody in the Walla Walla County jail with bai...
KAKE — After continued and extensive investigative efforts by Juneau-based Alaska State Troopers, Isaac Friday, 27, of Waitsburg, WA, was indicted on the charge of Murder 1 in the 2017 death of Jade Williams on Dec. 19. The following day, Troopers contacted the Walla-Walla County Sheriff’s Office and requested their assistance. On the 21st, Friday was arrested by WCSO Deputies in Dayton, WA, and remanded to the Walla Walla County jail on $500,000 bail. The arrest happened as a result of an August 15, 2017 report that Jade Williams 19 yoa fro...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A powerful Alaska Native corporation is withdrawing from the Alaska Federation of Natives at the end of this year, KTOO Public Media reported. Arctic Slope Regional Corp. Director of Communications Ty Hardt wrote in a statement issued Friday that the organization's board of directors voted unanimously to end its membership in the federation on Dec. 31. ``With this decision, ASRC intends to focus on the various needs within Alaska's North Slope, where there is an increased degree of alignment as well as additional e...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) _ The trans-Alaska pipeline has reached a milestone of 18 billion barrels pumped, officials said. The pipeline carrying Alaska's oil from Prudhoe Bay to the shipping port of Valdez reached the milestone on Friday, KTUU-TV reported Monday. Pipeline operator Alyeska Pipeline Service Company said $145 billion in revenue from North Slope crude oil has been raised for Alaska. The pipeline hit the 17 billion barrel mark five years ago, officials said. The new level was reached as the Alaska Department of Revenue released a...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Alaska’s latest revenue forecast has estimated a $200 million decrease in oil revenue after an excess of the resource contributed to lower prices worldwide, state officials said. The state Department of Revenue released the forecast Friday revealing both prices and production are running below expectations presenting challenges for state officials planning next year’s budget, officials said. The Alaska North Slope oil price is forecast to decline from the $66 originally projected in the spring to $63.54 a barrel befor...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — The trans-Alaska pipeline has reached a milestone of 18 billion barrels pumped, officials said. The pipeline carrying Alaska’s oil from Prudhoe Bay to the shipping port of Valdez reached the milestone on Friday, KTUU-TV reported Monday. Pipeline operator Alyeska Pipeline Service Company said $145 billion in revenue from North Slope crude oil has been raised for Alaska. The pipeline hit the 17 billion barrel mark five years ago, officials said. The new level was reached as the Alaska Department of Revenue released a fall...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — More than half of Alaska’s ferries will be out of service amid a lack of funds to repair the vessels, transportation officials said. The state Department of Transportation and Public Facilities announced this week that the Aurora and the LeConte will be pulled from service after inspections revealed required steel replacement, the Juneau Empire reported Friday. About 24 employees of the Aurora were already notified they would be relieved of duties effective Jan. 14, officials said. The Aurora is set for long-term lay...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — A new study of environmental threats to Alaska Native communities has found the greatest challenges include erosion, flooding and thawing permafrost. Alaska’s Energy Desk reported Sunday that the study results issued last month found the environmental hazards continue to worsen due to climate change. The Army Corps of Engineers and researchers at the University of Alaska Fairbanks conducted the study for the Denali Commission’s Village Infrastructure Protection Program. Officials say the three-year, $700,000 study exami...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Last December, poor weather scrambled Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s inaugural plans, a bumpy start to a turbulent year marked by budget disputes and a recall threat. Dunleavy told The Associated Press recently he hopes to move past the rancor. Whether he can repair strained relationships with legislators and calm the public anger over cuts that fueled the recall push will be telling. Courts will decide whether the recall effort advances. The Republican, who marks a year in office Tuesday, defended the cuts as a tough decisio...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Cub Scout Pack 10 came face-to-face with nature in the Harborview Elementary School cafeteria. After creating bird-enrichment toys, the Scouts met Juneau Raptor Center education ambassador birds Phil and Justice, a “very social” gyrfalcon and fish-head-loving bald eagle, on Nov. 22. Scouts like 8-year-old Oliver Robertson and 9-year-old Joseph Race kept their eyes trained on the birds, speaking up whenever one made sudden movement or sounds. “He’s trying to say something,” one Scout said in earnest after Phil squawked. T...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — The committee that will plan Alaska’s redistricting that occurs every 10 years is set to begin meeting, officials said. The state’s Redistricting Planning Committee is scheduled to hold its first meeting Wednesday in Anchorage, KTOO-FM reported Monday. Redistricting involves redrawing Alaska’s legislative districts to align with figures from the federal census, which also occurs once every decade, officials said. Final decisions about where district lines are drawn will be made by a separate redistricting board authori...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A southeast Alaska commercial fisherman convicted of fishing in a state research area has been sentenced to 30 days in jail and fined more than $35,000. Alaska State Troopers say 45-year-old Jonathan McGraw Jr. of Naukati Bay pleaded guilty last week to fishing in closed waters of Whale Pass and providing false information on a fish ticket. Both are misdemeanors. Wildlife troopers determined that McGraw in late 2017 and early 2018 harvested sea cucumbers in the research area where commercial diving is never p...
