News from around Alaska...
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News from around Alaska... 〰️
DAILY / WEEKLY LINKS
The links on this page are regularly updated from a variety of sources to provide timely and relevant information. Sources may change as new stories and updates become available.
Juneau Running Out Of Room To Dump Record Snow As It Races To Dig Out Before Rain Arrives
image from: weather.com
Juneau, Alaska, is racing to remove mountains of snow from across the city before rain turns a snow emergency into disastrous flooding. Flood watches are now in effect across the Alaska Panhandle for Friday into Saturday night.
As of Thursday morning, at least 34 inches of snow remained on the ground at Juneau International Airport after back-to-back storms. Teams of workers and volunteers are shoveling rooftops, digging out vehicles and sunken boats and hauling out truckloads of snow.
But the city is running out of places to pile up all that precipitation.
(READ MORE - weather.com)
Federal government shutdown postpones Alaska’s annual population estimate
image from: alaskabeacon.com
Alaska’s annual population estimate will be delayed almost a month due to last year’s federal government shutdown.
State demographer David Howell said on Wednesday that the state estimate isn’t expected until at least Jan. 28 due to the lack of required data from the U.S. Census Bureau.
The estimate is typically published in the first full week of January by the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development and reflects information as of July the previous year.
(READ MORE - alaskabeacon.com)
MacKenzie Scott bestows $18M on APU
image from: alaskapublic.org
Billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott’s foundation has donated $18 million to Alaska Pacific University.
APU President Janelle Vanasse said it’s a transformational contribution to the university.
“APU is heading in a really exciting direction, and to have somebody like MacKenzie Scott and her team recognize that — we're just so grateful for that, and just think it's really validating and we're excited about what's next for us," she said.
(READ MORE - alaskapublic.org)
NANA Acquires Drake Construction, Expanding Infrastructure Capabilities
image from: adn.com
NANA Regional Corporation completed the acquisition of substantially all assets of Drake Construction, a Kotzebue-based general contractor. Drake Construction brings deep expertise in general contracting, civil infrastructure, utility systems, aggregate production, and marine logistics. These capabilities directly complement NANA’s existing construction, engineering, and facilities operations.
(READ MORE - akbizmag.com)
AFN alarmed by proposed review of Alaska’s system of subsistence hunting and fishing
The U.S. Department of the Interior is considering whether to change Alaska’s unique system of hunting and fishing, which gives rural residents priority on federal land in Alaska.
According to a notice published Dec. 15 in the Federal Register, the Interior Department is conducting “a targeted review” of the program mandated by the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act.
While no specific changes were identified in the notice, it prompted the Alaska Federation of Natives to react with concern.
In a message to members, it called the new proposal “a serious threat and a major step backward” in fish and game management within Alaska, according to a report Tuesday by the Anchorage Daily News.
(READ MORE - alaskabeacon.com)
From Juneau to Fairbanks, Alaska saw record-breaking snow and cold to start winter
Alaska had a cold, and in some parts of the state very snowy, end to 2025.
December in Southeast Alaska was one for the record books, with historic snow and cold. Juneau had its snowiest-ever December and its coldest 30-day stretch in over 40 years.
Known for cold as much as Juneau is known for snow, Fairbanks just saw its chilliest 30-day stretch in a half-century.
National Weather Service climate researcher Brian Brettschneider — back for another Ask a Climatologist segment — says the early part of the season in Alaska has been characteristically wintry across the state.
(READ MORE - alaskapublic.org)
Alaskan skier makes history ahead of Winter Olympics with best American man finish in Tour de Ski
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - Gus Schumacher is hitting his stride at the right time as the Anchorage skier strung together a historic set of six races in eight days in Italy.
Schumacher placed seventh overall in the multi-day Tour de Ski, the best finish ever by an American male, which was previously set at 13th place.
(READ MORE - ktuu.com)
9 rescued from crab boat that ran aground on Bering Sea island
Nine fishermen were rescued Monday from a crab boat that ran aground on St. George Island and began taking on water in rough weather.
The Arctic Sea, a 134-foot crab boat with a few thousand pounds of catch aboard, ran aground on the north side of the Bering Sea island after losing power, according to Eric Deakin, CEO of Coastal Villages Region Fund, owner-operator of the vessel.
(READ MORE - adn.com)
ASAA Basketball Games
image from: https://asaa.org/activities/basketball/
There are 8 games for Alaska School Activities Association basketball today. The featured games are by Alaska School Activities Association top ranked teams #2 West Anchorage (Anchorage, AK) @ Dimond (Anchorage, AK), Bettye Davis East Anchorage (Anchorage, AK) @ #4 Service (Anchorage, AK), and #11 Chugiak (AK) @ Bartlett (Anchorage, AK). The first game, Ninilchik (AK) @ Susitna Valley (Talkeetna, AK), starts at 6:30p.
(READ MORE - maxpreps.com)
Alaska newborns kick off 2026 hours apart in Nome
NOME, Alaska (KTUU) - Two babies born within hours of each other in Nome helped ring in 2026, despite having different birth years.
Owen Lynden Elton Seppilu, a baby boy, and Octavia Norlina Kogassagoon, a baby girl, were separated by about nine hours at birth last week, but while Owen made it before the end of 2025, little Octavia waited until 2026 to make her appearance.
Octavia is likely the first newborn of the year in Alaska, having an official time of 12:23 a.m. on Jan. 1, 2026. (READ MORE - ktuu.com)
The Norton Sound is a news and events aggregation site that collects and shares information about what’s happening across the Norton Sound and Seward Peninsula region of Alaska. Unless otherwise stated, content featured on this site is not copyrighted by The Norton Sound; we serve solely as an aggregator, highlighting news, announcements, and events from a variety of sources.