INSIDER
Startling video shows Russian fighter jet flying within feet of US F-16 near Alaska
Read full article: Startling video shows Russian fighter jet flying within feet of US F-16 near AlaskaMilitary officials have released new video of a startling interaction between a Russian jet flying near Alaska and a U.S. plane sent to intercept it.
Alaska man charged with sending graphic threats to kill Supreme Court justices
Read full article: Alaska man charged with sending graphic threats to kill Supreme Court justicesAn Alaska man accused of sending graphic threats to injure and kill six Supreme Court justices and some of their family members has been released from custody after being indicted on federal charges.
Man gets 226 years in deaths of 2 Alaska Native women. He filmed the torture of one
Read full article: Man gets 226 years in deaths of 2 Alaska Native women. He filmed the torture of oneA man who killed two Alaska Native women and was heard while videotaping the torture death of one say that in his movies “everybody always dies” was sentenced in Anchorage Friday to 226 years in prison.
Baby moose trapped in a lake is saved by Alaska man and police as its worried mom watches
Read full article: Baby moose trapped in a lake is saved by Alaska man and police as its worried mom watchesAn Alaska man and two police officers have joined forces to rescue a baby moose that got stuck between a floatplane and a dock in a lake.
Alaska's Indigenous teens emulate ancestors' Arctic survival skills at the Native Youth Olympics
Read full article: Alaska's Indigenous teens emulate ancestors' Arctic survival skills at the Native Youth OlympicsThe Native Youth Olympics in Anchorage, Alaska, is a three-day celebration of Indigenous culture in the form of games that mimic hunting and survival techniques that Alaska Natives in the Arctic region have relied on for thousands of years.
South Africa man convicted in deaths of 2 Alaska Native women faces revocation of U.S. citizenship
Read full article: South Africa man convicted in deaths of 2 Alaska Native women faces revocation of U.S. citizenshipFederal prosecutors want to revoke the U.S. citizenship of a South Africa man convicted of killing two Alaska Native women for allegedly lying on his naturalization application for saying he had neither killed nor hurt anyone.
Man found guilty of murder in Alaska Native woman's killing that was captured on stolen memory card
Read full article: Man found guilty of murder in Alaska Native woman's killing that was captured on stolen memory cardA man who recorded the violent death of an Alaska Native woman on his cellphone was found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder in her death and that of another Alaska Native woman.
Prosecutor: Man accused of killing 2 Alaska Native women recorded images of both victims
Read full article: Prosecutor: Man accused of killing 2 Alaska Native women recorded images of both victimsA man accused of murdering two Alaska Native women recorded images of both of his victims, and the break in the case came when a third woman stole the man’s phone and provided police with photos and videos of one of the killings.
A woman stole a memory card from a truck. The gruesome footage is now key to an Alaska murder trial
Read full article: A woman stole a memory card from a truck. The gruesome footage is now key to an Alaska murder trialThe double murder trial of a man accused of killing two Alaska Native women is set to begin more than four years after a woman turned in a stolen digital memory card that authorities say contained gruesome recordings of one of the killings.
It's so cold and snowy in Alaska that fuel oil is thickening and roofs are collapsing
Read full article: It's so cold and snowy in Alaska that fuel oil is thickening and roofs are collapsingMuch of Alaska has plunged into a deep freeze, with temperatures colder than minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit in recent days in some places.
Alaskans get a $1,312 oil dividend check this year. The political cost of the benefit is high
Read full article: Alaskans get a $1,312 oil dividend check this year. The political cost of the benefit is highNearly every Alaskan will receive a check for $1,312 this week, the annual dividend from the earnings of the state’s nest-egg oil-wealth fund.
Bears raid a Krispy Kreme doughnut van making deliveries on an Alaska military base
Read full article: Bears raid a Krispy Kreme doughnut van making deliveries on an Alaska military baseTwo bears have raided a Krispy Kreme doughnut van that was stopped outside a convenience store on an Alaska military base.
Anchorage scrambles to find enough housing for the homeless before the Alaska winter sets in
Read full article: Anchorage scrambles to find enough housing for the homeless before the Alaska winter sets inAnchorage Mayor Dave Bronson gained national attention this summer when he proposed buying one-way airfare out of Alaska’s largest city for anyone without housing who wanted to leave.
Broadway fundraiser for Biden to star Sara Bareilles, Josh Groban and Lin-Manuel Miranda
Read full article: Broadway fundraiser for Biden to star Sara Bareilles, Josh Groban and Lin-Manuel MirandaBroadway royalty will be out in force Monday when stars like Sara Bareilles, Cynthia Erivo, Josh Groban, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Ben Platt perform at a fundraiser for President Joe Biden.
Alaska report details 280 missing Indigenous people, including whether disappearances are suspicious
Read full article: Alaska report details 280 missing Indigenous people, including whether disappearances are suspiciousLaw enforcement in Alaska has prepared a first-of-its-kind report detailing missing Alaska Natives and American Indians.
Federal report sheds new light on Alaska helicopter crash that killed 3 scientists, pilot
Read full article: Federal report sheds new light on Alaska helicopter crash that killed 3 scientists, pilotA helicopter that crashed on Alaska’s North Slope in July, killing three state scientists and the pilot, stopped sending flight-status data to a real-time tracking system as it passed over the southeastern shoreline of an Arctic lake.
Anchorage homeless face cold and bears. A plan to offer one-way airfare out reveals a bigger crisis
Read full article: Anchorage homeless face cold and bears. A plan to offer one-way airfare out reveals a bigger crisisA proposal by the mayor of Anchorage, Alaska, to fly homeless people to warmer climates or other Alaska cities underscores the homeless crisis affecting the state's largest city, and the very unique dangers faced by the unsheltered in an extreme environment.
How's the weather up there? It'll be harder for Alaska to tell as a longtime program goes off air
Read full article: How's the weather up there? It'll be harder for Alaska to tell as a longtime program goes off airThe “Alaska Weather” program has been must-see TV for 47 years in a state where extreme weather dictates everyday life.
'Leap of faith:' Alaska pursues carbon offset market while embracing oil
Read full article: 'Leap of faith:' Alaska pursues carbon offset market while embracing oilAlaska’s push to become a bigger player in the clean energy market is in the spotlight at a conference convened by Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy.
Alaska asylum seekers are Indigenous Siberians from Russia
Read full article: Alaska asylum seekers are Indigenous Siberians from RussiaAlaska's senior U.S. senator says two Russian Indigenous Siberians were so scared of having to fight the war in Ukraine, they chanced everything to take a small boat across the treacherous Bering Sea to reach American soil.
Alaska Natives fete their 1st Congress member, Mary Peltola
Read full article: Alaska Natives fete their 1st Congress member, Mary PeltolaDemocratic U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola received a hero’s welcome Thursday when the first Alaska Native to serve in Congress gave the keynote address at the Alaska Federation of Natives conference in Anchorage.
Storm battering western Alaska causes widespread flooding
Read full article: Storm battering western Alaska causes widespread floodingA powerful storm traveling north through the Bering Strait is causing widespread flooding in several western Alaska coastal communities, knocking out power and sending residents to higher ground.
Groups get creative to help Alaska voters with ranked voting
Read full article: Groups get creative to help Alaska voters with ranked votingOrganizations in Alaska have gotten creative in trying to help voters understand how to cast their ballot in the state's first ranked voting election on Aug. 16.
Search for Alaska grandma halted after toddler found in car
Read full article: Search for Alaska grandma halted after toddler found in carAlaska State Troopers have have halted their search for a missing woman whose 2-year-old grandchild was found alone last week in a locked car stuck in mud on a rural road.
Alaska Supreme Court ruling keeps Sweeney off House ballot
Read full article: Alaska Supreme Court ruling keeps Sweeney off House ballotThe Alaska Supreme Court has upheld a lower court’s ruling that will keep Republican Tara Sweeney off the ballot for the August special election in Alaska’s U.S. House race.
Alaska high court reverses ruling that roiled House election
Read full article: Alaska high court reverses ruling that roiled House electionThe Alaska Supreme Court has reversed a lower court decision that barred state elections officials from certifying the results of Saturday’s special U.S. House primary amid concerns about ballot accessibility for voters with visual impairments.
Family of local soldier killed by a bear in Alaska invites people to pay their respects
Read full article: Family of local soldier killed by a bear in Alaska invites people to pay their respectsThe family of a local soldier killed by a bear in Alaska invites people across Northeast Florida to come out Monday and pay their respects.
‘He was a true patriot’: Family remembers Army sergeant from St. Augustine killed by bear in Alaska
Read full article: ‘He was a true patriot’: Family remembers Army sergeant from St. Augustine killed by bear in AlaskaHe was identified by his family as U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Seth Plant. He was 30 years old.
COVID spike pushes Alaska’s health care system to brink
Read full article: COVID spike pushes Alaska’s health care system to brinkAlaska is experiencing one of the nation's sharpest upticks in COVID-19 infections, and it's worsened by a limited health care system that largely relies on hospitals in its biggest city.
Alaska records most daily COVID cases amid healthcare strain
Read full article: Alaska records most daily COVID cases amid healthcare strainAlaska has reported its highest number of new COVID-19 cases, a day after the state’s largest hospital announced it had entered crisis protocol and started rationing care.
Alaska's largest hospital implements crisis care standards
Read full article: Alaska's largest hospital implements crisis care standardsAlaska's largest hospital is implementing crisis standards of care, or prioritizing resources and treatments to those patients who have the potential to benefit the most.
Don’t buy fake COVID-19 vaccine cards or negative test results. Here’s why
Read full article: Don’t buy fake COVID-19 vaccine cards or negative test results. Here’s whyWith more places requiring proof that you’ve had a COVID-19 vaccine or a recent negative test, scammers see this as an opportunity to profit by selling fake verification tools or products, like fake vaccination cards.
Feds: Man used fraudulent PPP loan to buy alpaca farm
Read full article: Feds: Man used fraudulent PPP loan to buy alpaca farmFederal prosecutors say the owner of a Massachusetts pizza parlor lied about the number of employees he had to fraudulently obtain more than $660,000 in federal coronavirus relief funds, then used some of the money to buy an alpaca farm in Vermont.
Czech billionaire among 5 killed in Alaska helicopter crash
Read full article: Czech billionaire among 5 killed in Alaska helicopter crashThis photo provided by the Alaska Mountain Rescue Group shows the scene of a helicopter crash near the Knik Glacier in Alaska on Sunday, March 28, 2021. The pilot and four of the five passengers on board died in the crash, including billionaire Petr Kellner, the richest man in the Czech Republic. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the cause of the crash just north of Anchorage on Saturday night. Among the dead in the Saturday evening crash was billionaire Petr Kellner, the richest man in the Czech Republic. The five passengers included three guests and two guides from the Tordrillo Mountain Lodge, said company spokesperson Mary Ann Pruitt.
US, China spar in first face-to-face meeting under Biden
Read full article: US, China spar in first face-to-face meeting under BidenBlinken said the Biden administration is united with its allies in pushing back against China’s increasing authoritarianism and assertiveness at home and abroad. Yang responded angrily by demanding the U.S. stop pushing its own version of democracy at a time when the United States itself has been roiled by domestic discontent. “I’m hearing deep satisfaction that the United States is back, that we're reengaged,” Blinken retorted. Just a day before the meeting, Blinken had announced new sanctions over Beijing's crackdown on pro-democracy advocates in Hong Kong. “Is this a decision made by the United States to try to gain some advantage in dealing with China?"
China, North Korea loom as Blinken, Austin head to Asia
Read full article: China, North Korea loom as Blinken, Austin head to AsiaThat makes consultations with the reclusive country's neighbors, Japan, South Korea and China, all the more critical. Meanwhile, U.S. and South Korean negotiators have overcome years of contentious discussions under Trump to reach a tentative deal on paying for the American troop presence in South Korea. He served in the Philippines and Indonesia during the Trump administration and was also previously the special envoy for North Korea. For all of Biden's suggestions that he will reverse Trump's overt hostility to China, Biden has yet to countermand a single one of his predecessor's policies. “After the work of the past 50 days, Secretary Blinken and I will enter the meeting with senior Chinese representatives from a position of strength,” Sulllivan said Friday.
Supreme Court won't get involved in Fairbanks Four case
Read full article: Supreme Court won't get involved in Fairbanks Four caseRoberts and three other men were convicted of killing a Fairbanks teenager in 1997. Four men who say they were illegally imprisoned for nearly two decades for the murder of a teenager in Alaska will have their lawsuit go forward after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to get involved in the case. In January of last year it overturned a lower court ruling that had dismissed a lawsuit by the Fairbanks Four against the city of Fairbanks. In January of last year the appeals court overturned a lower court ruling that dismissed a lawsuit by the Fairbanks Four against the city of Fairbanks. The four men — George Frese, Kevin Pease, Marvin Roberts and Eugene Vent — were convicted of murder in the 1997 death of Fairbanks teenager John Hartman.
Pandemic forces route change, other precautions for Iditarod
Read full article: Pandemic forces route change, other precautions for IditarodFILE -bIn this Oct. 15, 2019, file photo, Iditarod CEO Rob Urbach poses for a photo in Anchorage, Alaska. Urbach is encouraging fans to watch the race start and finish live on TV or on the Internet. AdHe said he told Redington before the first Iditarod in 1973: “There’s nobody in Iditarod. AdUrbach has had challenges at every turn as he tries to pull off the second Iditarod during the coronavirus pandemic. The next year, the Iditarod reversed its decision and cleared Seavey, but he took his dogs to Norway to race instead.
The Latest: Anchorage opens up after COVID-19 drop, vaccines
Read full article: The Latest: Anchorage opens up after COVID-19 drop, vaccinesPlastic surgeon Daniel Suver receives the Pfizer-BioNtech COVID-19 vaccine from Andrea Castelblanco during a vaccine clinic on Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2020, at Providence Alaska Medical Center in Anchorage, Alaska. Anchorage is averaging about 60 new COVID-19 cases a day, said Dr. Janet Johnston, the epidemiologist for the Anchorage Health Department. More than 90 million doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine will be produced in Japan. Ad___SACRAMENTO -- California reported its second-highest number of COVID-19 deaths — while the rates of new coronavirus infections and hospitalizations continue to drop. ___ALBANY, N.Y. — New York may have undercounted COVID-19 deaths among nursing home residents by thousands.
Infectious diseases expert: You should wear a mask with or without the COVID-19 vaccine
Read full article: Infectious diseases expert: You should wear a mask with or without the COVID-19 vaccineFILE - Pharmacist Ron Simono fills a syringe with a dose of the Pfizer-BioNtech COVID-19 vaccine during a vaccine clinic on Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2020, at Providence Alaska Medical Center in Anchorage, Alaska. (Loren Holmes/Anchorage Daily News via AP, Pool)After getting the COVID-19 vaccine, some people are asking whether they have to wear a mask. Dr. Mohammed Reza, an infectious diseases specialist in Jacksonville, said you should be wearing a mask with or without the vaccine. As far as the studies Pfizer and Moderna are conducting when it comes to patients who are symptomatic, Reza said there’s no data on that yet. The Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine was approved by Food and Drug Administration for emergency use last week.
Extra doses of Pfizer vaccine were thrown away due to labeling error, FDA says
Read full article: Extra doses of Pfizer vaccine were thrown away due to labeling error, FDA saysA syringe contains a dose of a Pfizer-BioNtech COVID-19 vaccine sits in a container, Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2020, during a vaccine clinic at Providence Alaska Medical Center in Anchorage, Alaska. ( (Loren Holmes/Anchorage Daily News via AP, Pool)JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said late Wednesday night that extra doses from vials of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine can be used after reports of vaccine doses were being thrown away by pharmacists due to a labeling error. The Pfizer vials were labeled as holding five doses, but pharmacists said there was enough for a sixth or even a seventh dose. The Moderna vaccine only needs to be stored at -13°F to -5°F, compared to Pfizer’s -112°F to -76°F. Memorial Hospital Jacksonville began vaccinations at 10 a.m. Thursday after the Pfizer vaccine arrived earlier in the morning.
WHO: Vaccination in Asia-Pacific expected mid or late 2021
Read full article: WHO: Vaccination in Asia-Pacific expected mid or late 2021While some countries that have independent vaccine purchase agreements might start vaccination campaigns in the coming months, others could see vaccination begin in the middle or late 2021, said Dr. Socorro Escalante, WHO’s coordinator for essential medicines and health technologies. “It’s important to emphasize that most, if not all, the countries in the Western Pacific region are a part of the COVAX Facility,” said Escalante. WHO representatives also urged that high-risk groups should be prioritized for vaccination as vaccines will only be available in limited quantities. The WHO Western Pacific Region is home to almost 1.9 billion people across 37 countries and territories. ___The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education.
Nude photos and death threats: Scandal topples Alaska mayor
Read full article: Nude photos and death threats: Scandal topples Alaska mayorANCHROAGE, Alaska – A stunning tale of inappropriate behavior between a politician and a television anchor, death threats and nude photos culminated in a joint police and FBI investigation, the arrest of the journalist and the resignation of the mayor of Anchorage. The caller threatened to kill Berkowitz, who is Jewish, and his wife, in a diatribe laced with racist insults. “When he slided into my texts, he was so smooth with his little witty slogans and pictures,” Athens told the newspaper. Athens, a graduate of Seton Hall University in New Jersey, said she was feeling isolated in Alaska. He served as a Democrat in the Alaska House of Representative from 1997 to 2006, serving the last two years as minority leader.
Iditarod preps for any scenario as 2021 race plans proceed
Read full article: Iditarod preps for any scenario as 2021 race plans proceedIt's not the mushers that worry Iditarod CEO Rob Urbach; they're used to social distancing along the 1,000 mile trail. It’s not the mushers who worry Iditarod CEO Rob Urbach; they’re used to social distancing along the 1,000-mile trail. “Our course may be adapted to navigate around any civilization, and that will be a heck of a race,“ Urbach said. She is an infectious disease epidemiologist at Emory University in Atlanta and has been an Iditarod race volunteer for years, often spending time in small villages. Urbach said race officials continue to anticipate what the race could look like six months from now.
Big tippers: Alaska man joins push to aid restaurant workers
Read full article: Big tippers: Alaska man joins push to aid restaurant workersThe fund topped $6,000 and he's been able to give out $500 tips. It was all starting to come together, Backus recalled about Little fanning out the $100 bills to give to her. Little started by giving $500 tips to five separate waiters or waitresses across the city. Celebrity chef Guy Fieri partnered with the non-profit National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation to start the Restaurant Employee Relief Fund. The fund provided $500 cash grants to more than 43,000 workers during the pandemic, Sink said.
Cold case units focus on missing, murdered Indigenous women
Read full article: Cold case units focus on missing, murdered Indigenous womenShe attended the opening of a Lady Justice Task Force cold case office in Anchorage, which will investigate missing and murdered Indigenous women. These women are among the hundreds of Alaska Native or American Indian women who have gone missing over the years, and in many instances, their cases have gone cold. Now the Bureau of Indian Affairs Office of Justice Services is opening seven Operation Lady Justice Task Force cold case offices across the country to concentrate on the number of missing and murdered Indigenous women. In late July, when the first cold case office opened in Bloomington, Minnesota, the database indicated there were more than 1,500 unsolved cases of missing or murdered Indigenous women. Arizona has the second highest count of cold cases, at about 240.
Alaska Bar sidesteps contentious Dershowitz keynote choice
Read full article: Alaska Bar sidesteps contentious Dershowitz keynote choiceANCHORAGE, Alaska Just days after the announcement that famed trial attorney Alan Dershowitz would be the keynote speaker sparked a controversy among its members, the Alaska Bar Association has canceled this years annual conference. Bill Walker, Dershowitz seems a complicated selection for the keynote in Alaska, where rates of violence against women are among the highest in the nation. Im sure he was paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to represent Jeffrey Epstein, Kendall said. I have no sympathy for that.Stone said the bar associations governing board will meet in September to discuss the selection process for keynote speaker going forward. Dershowitz said he would love to come to Alaska and give the keynote in 2021.
Powerful quake shakes Alaska towns, creates small tsunami
Read full article: Powerful quake shakes Alaska towns, creates small tsunamiThere were no immediate reports of damage in the Alaska Peninsula and the tsunami warning was canceled after the magnitude 7.8 quake offshore created a wave of a less than a foot (30 centimeters). Residents in some small towns within a hundred miles (160 kilometers) of the quake reported very strong shaking and some shaking was felt more than more than 500 miles (805 kilometers) away in the Anchorage area, said Michael West, Alaska state seismologist. The tsunami warning prompted coastal residents to evacuate to higher ground, with social media posts showing long lines of people fleeing towns like Homer and Kodiak as tsunami sirens wailed. Tuesdays quake was more powerful than the magnitude 7.1 earthquake that caused damage in the Anchorage area in November 2018. More than a dozen aftershocks of magnitude 4.0 or higher were reported immediately after the earthquake, he said from the Alaska Earthquake Center at the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
Alaska Native Elizabeth Peratrovich to be featured on $1 coin
Read full article: Alaska Native Elizabeth Peratrovich to be featured on $1 coinANCHORAGE, Alaska - Elizabeth Peratrovich, a civil rights activist and member of the Tlingit Nation, will become the first Alaskan Native to appear on US currency. She also served as the Grand President of the Alaska Native Sisterhood. The coin's design was unveiled during the Alaska Native Brothers and Alaska Native Sisters Convention at Alaska Pacific University on Saturday by Patrick Hernandez, United States Mint Chief Administrative Officer. Saturday also marked the official declaration of November as Alaska Native Heritage Month. The legislation was signed into law during the Alaska Native Brothers and Alaska Native Sisters Convention.
Climate crisis plays out in Alaska
Read full article: Climate crisis plays out in AlaskaANCHORAGE, Alaska (CNN) - Alaska's summer of fire and no ice is smashing records. When lightning struck the Kenai Peninsula, it was just the beginning of a wilderness inferno unlike any other in memory. Today, the closest sea ice to any part of Alaska is over 125 miles offshore. They are tick hunters from the Institute for Circumpolar Health Studies at the University of Alaska. As Lyme Disease spreads across a warming US, she's worried that Alaska might be next.