KASILOF, Alaska (AP) — Alaska officials say highway improvement plans will result in better fish passage and overall safety. The Peninsula Clarion reports the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities showed the latest draft of their plans for Sterling Highway on Wednesday. DOT plans to widen the existing shoulders from 4 feet wide to…
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Record breaking summer cruise passengers coming to Juneau
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — A record breaking amount of cruise passengers are expected to land in Juneau this summer. The Juneau Empire reports Cruise Lines International Association Alaska President John Binkley announced Thursday that over 1 million summer cruise passengers are traveling to Juneau. The association predicts the travelers in the city from May 1…
Zika virus confirmed in Alaskan who visited Central America
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — State health officials say an Alaska resident who recently traveled to Central America has tested positive for the mosquito-borne Zika virus. But the state’s top medical officer, Jay Butler, is urging Alaskans to stay calm. In a release, Butler says people cannot spread the virus through casual contact. He also says…
Experts: Long road ahead for Trump offshore drilling order
President Donald Trump’s executive order seeking to find new ocean expanses in the Atlantic and the Arctic for offshore drilling isn’t likely to reach its goals anytime soon but instead, will kick off a yearslong review and legal battle. Trump signed the order Friday aimed at dismantling a component of former President Barack Obama’s environmental…
Judge sentences couple investigated after boy overdoses
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A Palmer man and woman investigated for drug dealing after a teenager died of an overdose at their home will serve federal prison terms. U.S. District Judge Sharon Gleason on Thursday sentenced 41-year-old Tod Rodolph to 12 years in prison and fined him $30,000. Gleason sentenced 36-year-old Jessica Hopkins to six…
Salmon fishing predictions look bleak for Cook Inlet
KENAI, Alaska (AP) — The Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s commercial sockeye salmon outlook this year is predicting Upper Cook Inlet fishermen will have their lowest harvest in the past 15 years. The Peninsula Clarion reported earlier this week that the outlook predicts a total run of 4 million fish to all stream systems…
Kenai River bank at popular fishing spot to get restored
KENAI, Alaska (AP) — A heavily trafficked stretch of the Kenai River’s southern bank is getting repaired in time for the sockeye salmon season thanks to a $37,500 grant from the federal government. The Peninsula Clarion reports the crumbling riverbank behind the Donald E. Gilman River Center in Soldotna has been depositing silt into the…
Employee injured in shooting at Anchorage grocery store
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Authorities say a grocery store employee in Anchorage was shot and wounded as he tried to keep a group of teens from trashing the inside of the store. Officers had responded Saturday morning after police say the teens were fighting inside the store, breaking merchandise and urinating in the aisles. Police…
Small earthquake hits near town of Talkeetna
TALKEETNA, Alaska (AP) — A minor earthquake has hit central Alaska, near the town of Talkeetna. The U.S. Geological Survey reports that the magnitude-2.9 earthquake hit 14 miles southeast of Talkeetna, which has a population of about 900, at 12:13 a.m. Saturday. The earthquake had a depth of 28 miles (44 kilometers.) There are no…
Ketchikan seafood processors to see water rate hikes
KETCHIKAN, Alaska (AP) — Officials in Ketchikan have approved an ordinance that more than doubles water rates for the southeast Alaska city’s seafood processors over the next three years. The Ketchikan Daily News reports the City Council approved the ordinance Thursday. Water rates will increase by 35 percent each year over the next three years…