As aging water systems and government bureaucracy threaten the public health of Alaska Native villages across the Bering Strait region, community leaders struggle to obtain funding for critical water and sewer infrastructure.
Western
‘We dodged a bullet’: Kuskokwim River ice jams soften as flood risk decreases
The Kuskokwim River has largely cleared itself of in-place ice, greatly reducing the chances of flooding along the river, according to the National Weather Service.
What Alaskans learned from ‘the mother of all pandemics’
Newspaper articles paint a gloomy and eerily familiar picture of Juneau during the 1918 flu pandemic: stories of schools shutting down, businesses closing and mandatory self-quarantines.
Kuskokwim River flood waters threaten Upper Kalskag power plant
Meanwhile, the ice jam just below Napaimute remains solid, and the ice has moved out of Aniak farther downstream on the Kuskokwim River.
In the middle of a pandemic, Southwest Alaska villages plan for possible flood evacuations
The state’s emergency operations center is carefully watching the melting ice on rural rivers to see if it will need to intervene — which could include flying entire villages to hubs like Bethel or Anchorage.
Sport fishing stays open, but restrictions will shape Bristol Bay’s summer tourism
Alaska has designated fishing as “critical infrastructure” — including sport fishing. But travel mandates could make trips to fishing destinations an upstream battle for people trying to come in from out of state.
Ravn’s bankruptcy leaves many rural Alaskans without medical transport during pandemic
Ravn Air Group’s bankruptcy left state officials and health providers scrambling to figure out how to transport rural patients who test positive for the coronavirus.
Y-K Delta health corp. to begin laying off workers following ‘devastating’ revenue losses
The Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corp. employs over 1,400 people across the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta region. Beginning this week, YKHC will begin furloughing and laying off 300 employees.
After a rabid coyote attacked a dog, Quinhagak lifted travel ban for a vet
Like many villages, Quinhagak has strict travel restrictions in place to protect the community from COVID-19.
Three Alaska tribes have joined lawsuit against the Treasury over $8B in Tribal funding
The lawsuit seeks to prevent Alaska Native corporations from taking part in the $8 billion coronavirus relief fund – specifically allocated for Tribes.