Anchorage news

• A black bear checked into Juneau’s historic Alaskan Hotel

  07-07-2026 02:18 via ktoo.org
  
  A black bear looks around the second floor hallway of the Alaskan Hotel on Sunday, July 5, 2026. (Photo courtesy of Queenie Lim)
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  https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/06HotelBear-WEB.mp3
  A black bear entered Juneau’s historic Alaskan Hotel around noon on Sunday. Hotel staff said the bear let itself out with a loud crash just a short while later. 
  The bear crawled through the open, second story window of room 213, which is at ground level since t
  
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• Newscast – Monday, July 6, 2026

  07-07-2026 02:59 via ktoo.org
  
  https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/20260706-News-Update.mp3
  In this newscast: A black bear entered Juneau’s historic Alaskan Hotel on Sunday,
  Ship traffic is growing in the Arctic and scientists are looking at how that affects marine mammals,
  A California couple set out to play a game of croquet on the lawn of every state capitol, but Alaska’s doesn’t have a lawn,
  The Alaska state House’s ethics committee says Homer Republican Representative Sarah Vanc
  
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• Team to salvage site of Coast Guard helicopter crash in Sitka

  07-07-2026 00:07 via ktoo.org
  
  The MH-60 Jayhawk from Air Station Sitka went down on Harbor Mountain on June 22. (USCG)
  A team of experts is working to salvage a Coast Guard helicopter that crashed on Sitka’s Harbor Mountain last month. The U.S. Coast Guard said in a press release that the effort is being led by the Downed Aircraft Recovery Team from the Alaska Army National Guard out of Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. The group plans to assess the aircraft for its removal, recover the wreckage, and mitigate
  
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• NOAA eyes potential changes to Alaska sea lion protections as Trump urges boosted seafood harvests

  06-07-2026 21:00 via ktoo.org
  
  Steller Sea lions rest on a rocky ledge in Kenai Fjords National Park on July 31, 2013. The western population of Steller sea lions is listed as endangered, and fishery managers have imposed protection to limit the impacts to the animals from commercial seafood harvest. (Photo by Kaitlin Thoresen/National Park Service)
  Federal regulators plan to reevaluate fishing closure boundaries established to protect endangered Steller sea lions in Alaska, part of a national Trump administration push to cut
  
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• Couple ends nearly 20-year journey to play croquet on every state Capitol lawn in Juneau

  06-07-2026 15:01 via ktoo.org
  
  Ashton and Lydia Buswell pose holding croquet mallets across the street from the Alaska State Capitol Building in Juneau on June 27, 2026. (Photo by Jamie Diep/KTOO)
  Listen here:
  https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/06Croquet-1.wav
  Ashton Buswell cheered on a rainy Saturday morning as his sister hit a croquet ball at the State Capitol Building in Juneau. His family set up the game in a bit of an unconventional spot. 
  While croquet is typically played on a lawn, the Alaska State
  
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• As ship traffic rises, 2 new studies look at how that could affect marine mammals in the Arctic

  06-07-2026 15:00 via ktoo.org
  
  Bowheads surfacing near a tug boat. (Katie Stafford)
  In the increasingly warming Arctic, less sea ice means more ship traffic. In two recent studies scientists are looking at how that affects marine mammals.
  The studies, published in June, concluded that for bowhead whales and ringed seals, exposure to ships during the ice-covered season is relatively low for now. Still, scientists have concerns about the future effects of ships on wildlife.
  Angela Szesciorka, a researcher with Oregon State Univ
  
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• Alaska is a dud at the Great American State Fair

  03-07-2026 22:58 via ktoo.org
  
  Mary and Ken Rinke drove from Michigan to attend the Great American State Fair on June 27, 2026. They were disappointed Alaska had no presence. (Liz Ruskin/Alaska Public Media)
  WASHINGTON — All 50 states have space at the Great American State Fair, underway now on the National Mall, but only some states approach greatness.
  Michigan, for instance, homestate of Kellogg’s, is giving away little bags of cereal and Michigan-grown potato chips. It’s got a prize wheel and quizzes. It
  
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• Juneau’s July Fourth fireworks display postponed to Saturday

  03-07-2026 22:50 via ktoo.org
  
  People watch the fireworks launched from Gastineau Channel for the 2017 Fourth of July celebration. (Photo courtesy Matt Miller)
  Juneau’s July Fourth fireworks show is being postponed until Saturday night at 11:59 p.m. 
  In a video posted to social media, the Juneau Fireworks Crew made the announcement from a barge in Gastineau Channel. 
  “We are letting you know that, unfortunately, it is so windy and rainy out on the barge that we can’t set up tents to set up your fir
  
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• Alaska’s persistently high SNAP payment errors top nation for fourth consecutive year

  03-07-2026 22:19 via ktoo.org
  
  A shopper passes by a sign welcoming SNAP recipients at a Fred Meyer store in Anchorage on Monday, Nov. 3, 2025. (Matt Faubion/Alaska Public Media)
  Alaska’s food assistance program had the highest payment error rate in the country for a fourth straight year last year, according to rankings put out by the Agriculture Department late last month.
  During the last federal fiscal year, which ended in September 2025, 23% of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program recipients in Alaska ended up w
  
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• Fostering 48 parakeets: Alaska’s senior boom strains bird rescue groups

  03-07-2026 15:00 via ktoo.org
  
  A handful of the nearly 30 parakeets that Karen Rappe is fostering in her South Anchorage home on June 24. 2026. To apply to adopt a bird, contact the Alaska Bird Club.
  Parakeet cages filled a room in a modest house in South Anchorage. The birds’ chattering and chirping mixed with country music coming from a boombox below the cages.
  As the music swelled at the refrain “Somebody pour me a drank” the birds’ chirping increased, followed by loud squawks.
  The sound keeps them
  
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• Alaska school districts plead for guidance on oil surplus funding before students return

  03-07-2026 15:00 via ktoo.org
  
  Anchorage school buses are parked next to each other at the ASD Transportation Center on Aug. 2, 2023. (Tim Rockey/Alaska Public Media)
  School districts across Alaska are set to receive up to $115 million in one-time funding this year thanks to high oil prices. That’s due to what’s known as a “waterfall” in the state budget that passed shortly before the end of the Alaska Legislature’s regular session in late May.
  But how much of that $115 million will actually mate
  
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• Newscast – Thursday, July 3, 2026

  03-07-2026 02:59 via ktoo.org
  
  https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/20260702-News-Update.mp3
  In this newscast:Two cruise ships in Southeast Alaska have reported norovirus outbreaks in recent weeks,
  Tlingit and Haida’s president spoke about addiction prevention during the grand opening of Juneau’s first casino,
  Cancer Connection now has its first executive director,
  Alaska lawmakers failed to meet an informal deadline Wednesday to vote on a bill reducing taxes for the Alaska LNG project
  
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• Tlingit and Haida plans to launch gambling addiction treatment alongside its casino

  03-07-2026 02:43 via ktoo.org
  
  Tlingit and Haida President Chalyee Eesh Richard Peterson speaks at the grand opening of Two Coppers Casino on July 1, 2026. (Photo by Yvonne Krumrey/KTOO)
  The Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska’s president, Chalyee Eesh Richard Peterson, spoke about addiction prevention during the grand opening of Juneau’s first casino on Wednesday. The ceremonial event follows a soft open of the tribe’s Two Coppers Casino on Douglas Island last month.
  “We m
  
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• CDC reports two cruise ships in Southeast Alaska had norovirus outbreaks in June

  03-07-2026 02:27 via ktoo.org
  
  Cruise ships berth in downtown Juneau on Monday, June 9, 2026. (Photo by Clarise Larson/KTOO)
  Two cruise ships in Southeast Alaska have reported norovirus outbreaks in recent weeks, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
  The Ruby Princess – a Princess Cruises ship – had 102 of its 3,032 passengers as well as 23 crew members fall ill.
  The National Geographic Sea Bird also reported a norovirus outbreak. More than a quarter of the 68 passengers on the smaller vesse
  
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• State lawmakers delay vote on Alaska LNG tax bill until mid-July

  02-07-2026 22:01 via ktoo.org
  
  Sen. Bert Stedman, a Sitka Republican, presides over a mostly empty Senate chamber during a technical session at the Alaska State Capitol in Juneau on July 1, 2026.
  Alaska lawmakers failed to meet an informal deadline Wednesday to vote on a bill reducing taxes for the Alaska LNG project in hopes of improving the long-dreamed gas pipeline’s chances of moving forward.
  Lawmakers had planned to reconvene in Juneau July 1 to vote on a compromise drafted by a conference committee working out a n
  
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• A dead deep-sea whale was found near Sitka, the second this month

  02-07-2026 20:23 via ktoo.org
  
  A team carries the goose-beaked whale fetus to their boat.
  Ellie Schmidt and a few of her friends were camping at Fred’s Creek Cabin on Kruzof Island in early June. On a rainy Saturday morning at low tide, they took a walk on the beach.
  “And we came across a weird object, which I thought was part of a boat,” Schmidt said. “[My friend] thought maybe it was a very weirdly colored log. It was very white and gleaming.”
  As they got closer, they realized it was a whale. C
  
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• Newscast – Wednesday, July 1, 2026

  02-07-2026 03:02 via ktoo.org
  
  
  https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/20260701-News-Update-1.mp3
  In this newscast:Juneau’s city clerk’s office certified a citizen ballot proposition late last week that seeks to raise the city’s cap on the local property tax rate,
  A draft environmental assessment looking at homeporting up to two Coast Guard icebreakers in Juneau is open for public comment,
  A glacial lake outburst flood on the Taku River south of Juneau crested early Wednesday morning,
  Former U.S. S
  
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• Coast Guard draft assessment includes plans to accommodate up to two icebreakers in Juneau

  02-07-2026 02:28 via ktoo.org
  
  Catherine Reardon reads a display from the Coast Guard at the Juneau Arts and Culture Center on July 7, 2026. (Photo by Jamie Diep/KTOO)
  A draft environmental assessment looking at homeporting up to two Coast Guard icebreakers in Juneau is open for public comment. The agency held an open house on the assessment Tuesday at the Juneau Arts and Culture Center. 
  Mark Ridgway runs the environmental management branch of the Coast Guard’s civil engineering unit in Juneau. He said part of the
  
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• Taku River glacial outburst flood crests without breaching riverbanks

  02-07-2026 02:23 via ktoo.org
  
  The confluence of the Taku and Tulsequah Rivers. (Photo Courtesy of USGS/Alaska Science Center)
  A glacial outburst flood on the Taku River south of Juneau crested early Wednesday morning. 
  Water rushed out of Lake No Lake, a basin dammed by the Tulsequah Glacier in British Columbia.
  Aaron Jacobs is the senior service hydrologist at the National Weather Service in Juneau. He said the release began sometime Tuesday morning and was confirmed by a resident in the remote area. 
  “We ha
  
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• Deb Haaland visits Juneau to promote her new book

  02-07-2026 02:17 via ktoo.org
  
  Deb Haaland signs her new book “A Voice Like Mine” during a signing at the Sealaska Heritage Institute clan house Shuká Hít on June 28, 2026. Photo by Mircea Brown, courtesy of Sealaska Heritage Institute.
  Former U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland came to Juneau last weekend as a stop on a tour of her new memoir “A Voice Like Mine.” Haaland was the first Indigenous person to be appointed a cabinet secretary. 
  The name of the book comes from a c
  
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• Video: Experts talk timelines at KTOO’s glacial outburst flood panel

  01-07-2026 23:50 via ktoo.org
  
  About 150 community members attended KTOO’s expert panel discussion on Juneau’s annual glacial outburst flood Tuesday night at Thunder Mountain Middle School. KTOO Climate and Environment Reporter Alix Soliman moderated the discussion and audience question and answer session.
  Panelists included:Nate Rumsey, deputy director of engineering and public works, City & Borough of Juneau
  Denise Koch, director of engineering and public works, City & Borough of Juneau
  Sabrina Grubitz,
  
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• Division of Elections delays saying how they’ll list the two Dan Sullivans on the ballot

  01-07-2026 23:00 via ktoo.org
  
  Dan Sullivan from Petersburg, left, is challenging U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan, right. (Alaska Public Media)
  After a flurry of news stories about Dan Sullivan of Petersburg, who wants to get on the ballot to run against U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan, Tuesday brought a bit of a lull. Washington Correspondent Liz Ruskin and host Lori Townsend discuss the fine points we may have missed.
  The following transcript has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
  Lori Townsend: Liz, for those who haven’t foll
  
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• Christy Ciambor takes the helm at Cancer Connection as its first Executive Director

  01-07-2026 22:27 via ktoo.org
  
  Christy Ciambor, Executive Director. Cancer Connection (photo courtesy of Christy Ciambor)
  Listen:
  https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/26CANCERCONNECTION.wav
  The following transcript has been lightly edited for clarity.
  Mike Lane:  Now I understand your role at Cancer Connection is fairly new. So, what made you want to work for Cancer Connection?
  Christy Ciambor: About, I guess, maybe four years ago now, four or five years ago, my very dear friend was diagnosed with cancer, an
  
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• Halibut stamp required for charter boats in Alaska waters this year

  01-07-2026 15:00 via ktoo.org
  
  Federal fisheries managers have instituted new regulations for charter halibut fishing in Southeast and Southcentral Alaska this year. Anglers charter fishing in these regions must have a charter halibut stamp in order to keep their catch.
  The stamp costs $20 per day and the money will go to a nonprofit called the Recreational Quota Entity.
  According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, charter boat operators are the ones in charge of buying the stamps. David Ardinger, who as
  
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• Back on the ballot, Petersburg Dan Sullivan says he’s ready to start campaigning

  01-07-2026 15:00 via ktoo.org
  
  Dan Sullivan of Petersburg will be on the ballot for Alaska’s August primary. (Taylor Heckart/KFSK)
  Dan Sullivan of Petersburg said he’s happy the Alaska Supreme Court has upheld a lower court ruling to keep his name on the ballot.
  The 69-year-old retired teacher and U.S. Senate candidate has been the subject of a legal battle to determine whether the Alaska Division of Elections could remove his name from the ballot. The division has claimed that Petersburg Sullivan, who has the sam
  
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• Newscast – Tuesday, June 30, 2026

  01-07-2026 03:11 via ktoo.org
  
  
  https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/20260630-News-Update-2.mp3
  In this newscast:Juneau residents will see a 5% hike in their water and sewer utility rates starting Wednesday. Service and program fees at many city parks and recreation facilities will also increase.
  Juneau’s city clerk’s office certified a citizen ballot proposition last week that seeks to raise the city’s cap on the local property tax rate, also known as the mill rate. The move would return the tax
  
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• Citizen ballot proposition to reverse property tax cap change certified by city clerk

  01-07-2026 03:11 via ktoo.org
  
  Juneau’s city clerk’s office collects signature booklets for a ballot proposition at City Hall on Wednesday, June 17, 2026. (Photo by Clarise Larson/KTOO)
  Juneau’s city clerk’s office certified a citizen ballot proposition last week that seeks to raise the city’s cap on the local property tax rate, also known as the mill rate. The move would return the tax rate back to where it was before voters approved lowering it last fall.
  The certification means the proposition
  
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• Residential utility rates, Parks and Rec fees to increase in July

  01-07-2026 00:55 via ktoo.org
  
  Water sprays out of a hydrant on Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024. (Photo by Clarise Larson/KTOO)
  Juneau residents will see a 5% hike in their water and sewer utility rates starting on Wednesday. Service and program fees at many city parks and recreation facilities will also increase. 
  The utility rate hikes come after the Juneau Assembly voted last year to increase residential water and sewer rates by 5% annually through 2029. The increases this year are part of the second round of five planned in
  
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• Residential utilities rates and Parks and Rec and fees to increase in July

  01-07-2026 00:55 via ktoo.org
  
  Water sprays out of a hydrant on Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024. (Photo by Clarise Larson/KTOO)
  Juneau residents will see a 5% hike in their water and sewer utility rates starting on Wednesday. Service and program fees at many city parks and recreation facilities will also increase. 
  The utility rate hikes come after the Juneau Assembly voted last year to increase residential water and sewer rates by 5% annually through 2029. The increases this year are part of the second round of five planned in
  
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• Pride flags back up at Skagway’s Red Onion Saloon

  30-06-2026 20:10 via ktoo.org
  
  A Pride flag at the Red Onion Saloon on June 25. (Melinda Munson/KHNS)
  Besides serving as a popular tourist destination, the Red Onion Saloon has been a local meeting place for drag events and all things queer. But until recently, the new owner had a No Pride flags policy, although she donated money to the Pride Committee and hosted a Pride event. Some in the LGBTQ+ community are upset and say that policy put them at risk. But others say it’s more about how employers act and less about wha
  
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