Anchorage news

• Alaska Weather Forecast – March 8, 2017

  08-03-2017 23:27
  
  More sunshine in Anchorage today, with afternoon highs in the low 20s. It will still feel pretty chilly though, with northerly winds of 10 to 15 mph, and gusts of 25 to 35 mph — mostly near the airport.
  Breezy conditions will continue tonight, with winds tapering off tomorrow.
  Today we gain 5 hours and 44 minutes of daylight, making our day 11 hours and 7 minutes long.
  Iditarod Weather
  Conditions continue to remain calm and clear across the trail. Daytime highs for the Ruby, Galena an
  
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• Mendenhall Valley home burglary suspect arrested, guns reported stolen

  08-03-2017 23:07 via ktoo.org
  
  Juneau police arrested a burglary suspect Tuesday after getting a call for a suspicious person in Mendenhall Valley, according to a department news release.
  Brandon L. Bowhay, 36, of Juneau was arrested on three felony charges including burglary and theft.
  Shortly after noon, Juneau police said someone reported a suspicious man walking out of a residence in the 9900 block of Stephen Richards Memorial Drive. The caller did not recognize the person, later identif
  
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• The sorry state of America’s working women

  08-03-2017 23:01
  
  On International Women’s Day, it’s worth asking how American working women are doing compared with their counterparts in other developed countries.
  The answer: not great.
  On a number of fronts, American women who work outside the home are lagging their counterparts in countries such as Sweden, Mexico, Italy and Greece. U.S. women suffer from a gender wage gap that’s wider than in those and 17 other countries, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Developmen
  
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• Fairbanks snow plow crews working nonstop to clear roads

  08-03-2017 22:50
  
  City plows are working hard to ensure snow is removed quickly to prevent flooding in springCourtesy City of Fairbanks/Facebook City plows are working hard to ensure snow is removed quickly to prevent flooding in springCourtesy City of Fairbanks/Facebook
  Fairbanks snow plow crews are working around the clock in hopes of getting the city’s streets usable again.
  The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports crews are working 12 hour shifts, day and night, seven days a week for the next two wee
  
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• At 5, girl becomes youngest to qualify for National Spelling Bee

  08-03-2017 22:34 via ktoo.org
  
  Edith Fuller, 5, outlasted much older competitors in a regional spelling bee, earning a spot in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in May. (Photo by KJRH, Tulsa)
  Edith Fuller, 5, has booked a trip to the Scripps National Spelling Bee, after she out-spelled dozens of older competitors to win a regional bee in Tulsa, Okla. The home-schooled student will be the youngest competitor ever in the national spelling bee, which will hold its 90th contest in May.
  The folks at Scripps are already calling Ful
  
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• Health official: Alaska can’t absorb federal cost shift

  08-03-2017 22:33
  
  The state health commissioner says Alaska cannot absorb a shift in federal responsibility for health care costs back to the states, citing Alaska’s multibillion-dollar budget deficit.
  In a statement, Valerie Davidson says the expanded Medicaid program provides necessary treatment resources to help address opioid abuse in Alaska and is critical to efforts aimed at overhauling Alaska’s criminal justice system.
  Since the state expanded Medicaid in September 2015, more than 30,000 lower-
  
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• Low salmon projections cancel popular Southeast spring king derby

  08-03-2017 21:54 via ktoo.org
  
  
  Last year’s Spring King Salmon Derby in Juneau ran for all of May. This year’s was canceled because of projected poor salmon returns. (Image courtesy Spring King Salmon Derby)
  A popular Southeast spring fishing derby won’t happen this year, because there aren’t enough fish.http://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/ktoo/2017/03/07KingDerbyPkg.mp3David Turner Jr. won 2016’s Spring King Salmon Derby with a 29.25-pound salmon. (Image courtesy Central Council of Tlingit and
  
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• Alaska family travel expert releases new book

  08-03-2017 21:51
  
  “Alaska On the Go: Exploring the Alaska Marine Highway System with Children” will soon be available for pre-order.
  The book was written by Erin Kirkland, creator of the Alaska family travel website, AKontheGo.com.
  Her first book, “Alaska on the Go: Exploring the 49th State with Children” was published in 2014 and has already be reprinted once, having proven itself as a popular resource for families. It is an overall guide to traveling just about anywhere in Alaska wi
  
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• After a bruising 2016, Martin Buser upbeat for 2017

  08-03-2017 21:03 via ktoo.org
  
  Martin Buser is chasing his fifth Iditarod title in 2017. (Photo by Ben Matheson/KNOM)
  Last year, Martin Buser had a tough Iditarod.
  He finished in 37th place, his lowest position on the leader-board in a decades-long career.
  But this year, as the four-time champion charges through the race’s early checkpoints, a lot of things are going better.
  In 2016, Buser had a bad fall on the stretch of trail heading from Kaltag toward Unalakleet.
  With more than 200 miles to go, he was barely abl
  
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• Amid buzz on health bill, Murkowski keeps quiet

  08-03-2017 20:33 via ktoo.org
  
  
  U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski speaks with reporters at a press availability following her annual address to the Alaska Legislature on Feb. 22, 2017. (Photo by Skip Gray/360 North)
  Two U.S. House committees are due to take up the new Republican health care bill Wednesday, to replace the Affordable Care Act.
  When the bill gets to the Senate, Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, could turn out to be a swing vote.
  She has said she’s willing to break with her party to keep Medicaid expansion and funding f
  
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• Iditarod 45 Race Blog: Lead mushers hit the Yukon

  08-03-2017 20:30
  
  View the 2017 Iditarod Trail Map
   The post Iditarod 45 Race Blog: Lead mushers hit the Yukon appeared first on KTVA 11.
  
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• Bogoslof Volcano erupts again, sends ash cloud over Aleutians

  08-03-2017 20:18
  
  An Alaska volcano that’s been active since mid-December has erupted again with an ash cloud that could threaten airliners.
  The Alaska Volcano Observatory says Bogoslof Volcano in the Aleutian Islands started erupting at 10:36 p.m. Tuesday and sent up an ash cloud to 35,000 feet.
  The eruption was marked by seismic activity and lightning that subsided about 1:30 a.m. Wednesday.
  Ash can harm and stop jet engines. Ash from southwest Alaska volcanos is a threat to airliners operating between No
  
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• Juneau women participate in ‘Day Without a Woman’

  08-03-2017 20:07 via ktoo.org
  
  A group holds a demonstration during a International Woman’s Day march in 2012 in San Francisco. (Photo by Peg Hunter/Flickr/Creative Commons)
  Wednesday is International Women’s Day and this year many women in the U.S. are staying home from work as part of a loosely coordinated “Day Without a Woman” that organizers say will highlight the economic clout of women.
  In Juneau, Sarah Lewis took the day off from her job at the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extensio
  
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• Iditarod Trail photos: Tanana

  08-03-2017 19:53
  
  (David Poyzer / KTVA) Nicolas Petit is the first musher to pull into Tanana. (David Poyzer / KTVA) Martin Buser pulls into Tanana. (David Poyzer / KTVA) Martin Buser lays out straw for his dog team in Tanana. (David Poyzer / KTVA) (David Poyzer / KTVA) Pete Kaiser checks into Tanana. (David Poyzer / KTVA) Dallas Seavey checks into Tanana. (David Poyzer / KTVA) (David Poyzer / KTVA) (David Poyzer / KTVA) (David Poyzer / KTVA) (David Poyzer / KTVA)
  Tanana was buzzing Tuesday evening, as lead mush
  
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• Mushers adjust to deep cold near Manley Hot Springs

  08-03-2017 19:31 via ktoo.org
  
  
  The Manley Checkpoint (Photo by Ben Matheson/KNOM)
  During the first night of this year’s Iditarod, teams endured frigid temperatures on the Tanana River to reach the second checkpoint of Manley Hot Springs.
  Teams are adjusting to the deep cold and preparing to push to the Yukon River, where the race will unfold.
  http://media.aprn.org/2017/ann-20170307-01.mp3Nicolas Petit drove far into the night before pausing to rest.
  In Tuesday’s bright afternoon sun, Petit said the long, early run
  
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• Focus on Community – Mind Over Matter – 3-13-17

  08-03-2017 19:22 via ktoo.org
  
  Death and dying are topics we usually try to avoid.Not so with Juneau’s Foundation for the End of Life Care,which looks mortality head on.Please tune in to Mind Over Matter with Dr. Elaine Schroeder and Bruce Weyhrauch this coming Monday at 7pm on KTOO to learn why we really do need to be prepared for this final stage of life. That’s this Monday evening at 7 pm on Ktoo for Mind Over Matter.
  
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• Police looking for ‘person of interest’ in homicide near Spenard McDonald’s

  08-03-2017 17:32
  
  Anchorage police are investigating a homicide after a man’s body was found in Spenard Wednesday morning.
  Just after 5:15 a.m., officers responded to a call of a disturbance near the McDonald’s on Spenard Road, according to Anchorage Police Department dispatch.
  A body was found in an SUV in the McDonald’s parking lot after police say he jumped out of a window at the nearby Americas Best Value Inn – Executive Suites. Police are still piecing together the exac
  
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• Body found near Spenard McDonald’s; police conducting death investigation

  08-03-2017 17:32
  
  Anchorage police are conducting a death investigating after a body was found in Spenard Wednesday morning.
  Just after 5:15 a.m., officers responded to a call of a disturbance near the McDonald’s on Spenard Road, according to Anchorage Police Department dispatch.
  A body was found outside between McDonald’s and the Americas Best Value Inn – Executive Suites, APD says.
  The investigation is ongoing, and no suspects are in custody, as of 7:30 a.m.
  This is a
  
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• Petit is first to the Yukon; shares laughs and gourmet meal with local woman

  08-03-2017 09:28
  
  It was hard to focus on Nicolas Petit, as he ate a meal much finer than what he packed in his sled. He was served a five-course feast prepared by the executive chef of Anchorage’s Lakefront Hotel, a deserving delight served to the first musher to reach the Yukon River.
  But it was his dining partner, Tanana resident Blanch Edwin, who stole the show.
  “What fork do I use?” She asked, giggling. It was a light-hearted moment that made the checkpoint hub erupt in laughter, and i
  
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• Colony freshman wins Alaska Poetry Out Loud competition

  08-03-2017 08:27 via ktoo.org
  
  Juan Sarmiento of Homer performs “every single day” by John Straley during rehearsal for the Alaska state Poetry Out Loud finals at KTOO Public Media in Juneau. (Photo by Annie Bartholomew/KTOO)http://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/ktoo/2017/03/08POETRY.mp3Alaska Poetry Out Loud state winner Isabella Weiss of Colony High School performs “Hope is the Thing with Feathers – (314)” by Emily Dickinson at the Alaska Poetry Out Loud state finals in Juneau.
  Ten Alaska teens too
  
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• On the trail: Jason Mackey off to a strong start in this year’s Iditarod

  08-03-2017 06:40
  
  Jason Mackey took an early lead in this, his seventh run in the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. This year, he’s doing it without his brother, Lance Mackey, on the trail.
  KTVA Sports Director Dave Goldman caught up with him in Manley Hot Springs to see how he’s doing.
  KTVA is the official station of the Iditarod. Follow our coverage on Twitter, Facebook and online. 
  The post On the trail: Jason Mackey off to a strong start in this year’s Iditarod appe
  
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• Extreme cold on the Iditarod trail met with mixed feelings from volunteers, mushers

  08-03-2017 06:26
  
  Nearly all of this year’s mushers made it to Manley Hot Springs by Tuesday evening. The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race checkpoint is likely to be one of the coldest stops along the trail this year.
  Temperatures plummeted to more than 30 degrees below zero Tuesday as mushers raced into the checkpoint. Through the frost and the fur, it was hard to tell who was checking in; when temps drop that far below zero, everyone looks a little frozen.
  For those from the Lower 48, this kind
  
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• AFD to host free safety checks for kids’ car seats

  08-03-2017 05:57
  
  The Anchorage Fire Department and Safe Kids Alaska are hosting free car and booster seat checks this week at Fire Station 1.
  The Alaska Child Passenger Safety Coalition reported 1,488 car seat inspections in 2015, but only 171 of those seats were correctly installed, according to the group’s website. The car seat check’s aim is to ensure all children are safe and secure in their parents’ vehicles.
  “No appointment is necessary and certified Child Passenger Safety Technici
  
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• Police investigate early morning bagel shop burglary

  08-03-2017 05:46
  
  An Anchorage bagel restaurant was burglarized early Monday morning.
  Anchorage police spokeswoman Renee Oistad said officers responded to The Bagel Factory restaurant, located on West 34th Avenue, shortly after 5 a.m. after receiving reports that the front glass door of the restaurant had been smashed in.
  An employee confirmed that a suspect was able to steal an undisclosed amount of cash from a back office in the building.
  The employee said it’s the second time the restaurant has been
  
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• Record number of budget amendments could derail lawmakers from 90 day deadline

  08-03-2017 05:35
  
  Will legislators get done on time this year? Maybe not if a record number of budget amendments introduced in the House Finance Committee Tuesday is any indication. The panel hoped to have budget work wrapped up by Friday, but co-chairs are now talking about working through the weekend.
  Finance members began work on 321 amendments Tuesday morning, which added up to more than any legislator in the building had ever seen.
  “I’ve worked in the building in the ’90s and been a legisla
  
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• Juneau police chief says they will not monitor immigration status

  08-03-2017 05:34
  
  The Juneau Police Department has no plans to begin checking people’s immigration status. That announcement came from police Chief Bryce Johnson, who released a statement on Tuesday in response to questions from the public.
  Johnson said the department doesn’t have federal authority to enforce immigration laws. He added that public safety is their top priority, “not an individual’s immigration status.”Johnson said JPD doesn’t check people’s immigration sta
  
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• Marijuana Control Board votes against onsite consumption – again

  08-03-2017 05:09
  
  Clearing up confusion was a top priority for the Alaska Marijuana Control Board (MCB) during its March meeting on Tuesday. 
  Last month, the board rejected a proposal allowing onsite consumption at some retail pot stores, but in the days that followed, it became very clear the issue wasn’t dead. The board had already approved licenses for five shops that had onsite consumption as part of their business plan. 
  Onsite consumption would eventually allow customers to buy pot products
  
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• FAA records show pilot killed in Nome-area crash was not permitted to fly at night

  08-03-2017 05:00
  
  The Alaska pilot killed when his plane crashed about 10 miles east of Nome should not have been flying at the time, according to records from the Federal Aviation Administration.
  Thomas Grainger’s last communication was at 10:30 p.m. Sunday, according to Alaska State Troopers. Grainger, 28, has been a licensed private pilot since 2006, according to the FAA airman database. However, he had a medical restriction that said his license was “not valid for night flying or by color signal c
  
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• Great moments in Iditarod history: Susan Butcher’s first win

  08-03-2017 04:00
  
  Susan Butcher was one of the best Iditarod mushers of all time. KTVA 11 Sports Director Dave Goldman recaps her first win 31 years ago.Photos from The Iditarod Trail Insider and Iditarod: The First Ten Years – Frank Flavin
  KTVA is the official station of the Iditarod. Follow our coverage on Twitter, Facebook and online.The post Great moments in Iditarod history: Susan Butcher’s first win appeared first on KTVA 11.
  
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• Ask a Climatologist: Record cold at Iditarod start won’t last

  08-03-2017 03:08 via ktoo.org
  
  Teams rest at Nenana, on Tuesday, March 7, 2017. (Photo by Zachariah Hughes)
  It’s hard to talk about the Iditarod without mentioning weather and climate. And this year is no exception, with mushers and dogs enduring extreme cold in first part of the race.
  Climatologist Brian Brettschneider looks into how this year’s cold and snow stacks up to weather records from past races. He says the start Monday in Fairbanks was -19, by far the coldest in Iditarod history.
  “If you look
  
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• Rep. Wilson seeks deeper budget cuts, to no avail

  08-03-2017 02:43 via ktoo.org
  
  Rep. Tammie Wilson, R- North Pole, reads through a series of amendments to the state’s budget during the House Finance Committee meeting on Tuesday in Juneau. (Photo by Rashah McChesney/Alaska’s Energy Desk)
  Conflicts over the state budget are rising as the spending plan advances through the House Finance Committee.
  Committee member Tammie Wilson introduced more than 200 of 330 amendments to the budget, including a group of separate 38 cuts to overtime and other types of work th
  
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• Police say West High is safe after student posted threatening Snapchat selfie

  08-03-2017 02:05
  
  The Anchorage Police Department issued a statement Tuesday reassuring the public that there was no threat to a local high school after a student posted a threatening Snapchat message.
  The 15-year-old student took a selfie in front of West Anchorage High School on Tuesday, according to police spokeswoman Renee Oistad. She said the student “added a gun emoji, and wrote the words ‘don’t come to school tomorrow’ on the picture” before sending it to friends on Snapchat.
  
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• Anchorage teen charged with manslaughter following DUI crash

  08-03-2017 02:03
  
  An Anchorage teenager is facing charges related to a woman’s death following a mid-February collision.
  The crash occurred on Elmore Road near 64th Avenue on Feb. 16 around 1:40 p.m., according to the Anchorage Police Department. Police said 17-year-old Mohamad Azzam was driving a Subaru Forrester northbound on Elmore when he crossed over into oncoming traffic and collided with a Volvo.
  Bob Hobson, 77, was driving the Volvo, and his wife, 86-year-old Donna Hobson, was his passenger, police
  
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• Juneau Afternoon – 3-8-17

  08-03-2017 02:00 via ktoo.org
  
  Wednesday at 3 on A Juneau Afternoon,We’ll get the details about the Anniversary of the Juneau Raptor Center, with guests Janet Capito and Jamie Roundtree;
  We’ll learn about the Alaskans’ Womens Lobby Awards Luncheon with LaRea Jones;
  We’llget a preview of the Wednesday night Mudrooms event;
  And we’ll get an update on Eaglecrest with Jeffra Clough and Brian Davies
  
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• Trump supports GOP health care plan, but it isn’t everything he wants

  08-03-2017 01:46 via ktoo.org
  
  President Donald Trump is offering some Twitter support for the Obamacare replacement plan put forward by House Republicans.
  In a tweet Tuesday morning, Trump described the GOP blueprint as “Our wonderful new Healthcare Bill.” He suggested it would be a welcome change from the Affordable Care Act, which he called “a complete and total disaster.”
  “I’m proud to support the replacement plan released by the House of Representatives,” the president said Tuesd
  
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• Bethel wind turbine expected to displace hundreds of thousands of gallons of diesel fuel

  08-03-2017 01:39 via ktoo.org
  
  A new, large wind turbine is coming to Bethel.
  Anna Sattler, the rural liaison for the Alaska Village Electric Cooperative, said that the 900 kilowatt wind turbine is expected to be delivered next year, and it will be the largest turbine in the cooperative’s fleet, by a factor of nine.
  A wind turbine stands outside the Yukon-Kuskokwim Fitness Center. Alaska Village Electric Cooperative plans to erect a larger 900 kilowatt wind turbine near the Bethel airport in 2018. (Photo by De
  
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• Bethel wind turbine expected to displace hundreds of thousands of fallons of diesel fuel

  08-03-2017 01:39 via ktoo.org
  
  A new, large wind turbine is coming to Bethel.
  Anna Sattler, the rural liaison for the Alaska Village Electric Cooperative, said that the 900 kilowatt wind turbine is expected to be delivered next year, and it will be the largest turbine in the cooperative’s fleet, by a factor of nine.
  A wind turbine stands outside the Yukon-Kuskokwim Fitness Center. Alaska Village Electric Cooperative plans to erect a larger 900 kilowatt wind turbine near the Bethel airport in 2018. (Photo by De
  
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• King salmon sport fishing in Upper Copper River closed this season

  08-03-2017 01:31 via ktoo.org
  
  The Klutina River, a tributary of the Copper River (Photo courtesy Alaska Department of Fish and Game)
  The Department of Fish and Game announced Tuesday, March 7, that all king salmon sport fisheries in the Upper Copper River drainage will be closed for the season because of declining salmon returns.
  Other closures also will be implemented in an effort to ensure enough fish make it upriver to spawn.
  Fish and Game said the minimum amount of king salmon the department wants for maintaini
  
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• Troopers say recent Fairbanks standoff, fire was part of a homicide-suicide

  08-03-2017 00:45
  
  An Old Steese Highway apartment building is considered "unlivable" after a man set it on fire during a standoffCourtesy American Red Cross of Alaska
  Investigators are calling a recent incident in Fairbanks a domestic violence-related homicide and suicide.
  The deaths of 43-year-old Christina Hallum and her son, 23-year-old Stephen Hallum, occurred on March 1. Just after 7 a.m., Alaska State Troopers were notified of a domestic disturbance and responded to an apartment building on the 500 block o
  
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