KFSK Midday Magazine

The state transportation department did a complex drone mission during Juneau's glacial outburst flood; Petersburg's school buildings and surrounding area were on lockdown yesterday afternoon due to a false report of a gunman, police say; a total of 24 people filed for candidacy in Petersburg's local election; and a conversation with incoming kindergarten teacher, Kacey Hammer.

A car crash late Friday night near Petersburg landed two people in the hospital with moderate injuries; the U.S. House Natural Resources Committee is touring Alaska; and a discussion with Petersburg's new secondary math teacher.

The Juneau School District has started the year with more than 90 open positions, a restoration project near Hope is bringing salmon back to a creek impacted by mining, prospective candidates for local office in Petersburg must file by tomorrow evening, and a conversation with an incoming 4th grade teacher in Petersburg.

The US Postal Service has increased bypass mail rates; scientists are gauging rockslide risks in Skagway; and Petersburg musical duo K1nfolk share their story and artistic influences.

The filing deadline for the Petersburg Borough is coming up, but some open seats remain; Juneau's Assembly killed an ordinance that would make it easier to arrest people camping in public places; and traveling medical specialists are helping bridge healthcare gaps in Petersburg.

The state House and Senate met yesterday, but adjourned in less than a minute; Alaska Marine Lines won't ship electric vehicles to the state anymore; and a dance troupe in Petersburg wants to buy its studio's building from the church that ended services last month.

A sheltering drill in Petersburg helps update the town's emergency plans; after this year's glacial outburst flooding, some Juneau residents are considering a federal buyout; and the Petersburg Borough must repair a broken wastewater line to comply with a federal permit.

A master carver in Haines is working on three new totem pole replicas; Sitka might ask the state for more beer and wine licenses later this year; and Petersburg's borough assembly tonight will weigh a few potential budget adjustments.

A Petersburg nonprofit is starting a new program to support families with children; communities in Southeast Alaska are calling for improved management of sea otter populations; and Prince of Wales Island hosted its first disc golf tournament last weekend at a new course in Coffman Cove.

Floodwaters from Juneau's glacial outburst are receding and the flood threat ended; Sitka's long-awaited marine haulout is one step closer to opening; and authorities identified a couple black bears to remove from Petersburg, but it's not a long-term solution.

Juneau's glacial outburst flood is now testing the city's protective barriers; a historic petroglyph on a Wrangell beach was destroyed by vandalism; and the biggest arts festival on Prince of Wales Island celebrated its 15th year last weekend.

Alaska has regained jobs lost during the pandemic, but the state's seafood industry has seen losses; the U.S. Coast Guard added the first icebreaker to its fleet in 25 years; and a massive tsunami ripped through a fjord south of Juneau last Sunday with no injuries reported.

Two small Southeast Alaska communities will soon be able to lease halibut quota through a new regional program; the countdown has begun for Juneau's annual Glacial Lake Outburst Flood; and hundreds of people gathered in Wrangell last month to help raise new totem poles.

Experts say changes to Medicaid coverage in Alaska will look different from other states; an unlikely discovery in a cave on Prince of Wales Island could inform us about the last Ice Age; and two Canadian kayakers stopped by Petersburg along their thousand-mile expedition.

State lawmakers overrode two of the governor's vetos on Saturday in a pair of dramatic votes; a new law gives commercial fishermen a way to lower insurance costs; and the hydroelectric plant and neighboring salmon hatchery near Petersburg are working on ways to keep their shared water safe for fish.

Federal engineers say it could be a decade before a permanent solution is in place to protect a residential area in a Juneau flood zone; Haines and Skagway residents are joining together for a locally-sourced food challenge; and Petersburg's school district won't have to spend down as much of its reserves thanks to lawmakers' education funding veto override.

Alaska lawmakers refused an executive order from Gov. Mike Dunleavy seeking to create a state agriculture department; the state is kickstarting a plan to build a new ferry terminal between Juneau and Haines, but communities in the area are concerned; and Petersburg middle schoolers mapped a creek on Kupreanof Island last week.

Lawmakers coming to Juneau for the special session are divided on if it'll be worth the travel costs; Petersburg has a new youth fast-pitch softball club; and nonresidents will be allowed to sport fish for wild king salmon in Southeast Alaska again, starting Monday.

New trade deals don't seem to provide relief for timber companies in Alaska impacted by tensions between China and the U.S.; a jury in Juneau found a Petersburg man guilty of sexual assault; and an otter and beaver skin sewing class came to Petersburg last weekend.

Alaska Congressman Nick Begich III wants to roll back parts of the Marine Mammal Protection Act; not all Juneau residents believe the city should adopt a new seasonal sales tax system; and hospitals in Petersburg, Cordova, and Homer are teaming up to create a rural health network through a federal grant.

Southeast Alaska's king salmon troll fishery will get a noncompetitive second opening; a group of scientists wrapped up a deep-sea expedition in the western Aleutians this summer; and the candidacy filing period for Petersburg's local election opens today.

State Sen. Shelley Hughes of Palmer is planning on running for governor; the Trump administration wants to eliminate the Denali Commission; and after freezing the funds last month, the federal government will give funding for migrant education, which a quarter of students in Petersburg qualify for.

What to expect when lawmakers gather in Juneau for a special legislative session Aug. 2; one of Alaska's iconic mountain races had its youngest-ever winner; and Petersburg teenagers returned from a weeklong kayak camping trip this week.

State officials are still assessing the impact of the budget reconciliation bill on Alaska's Medicaid program; some Alaska school districts and advocates are suing the Trump administration; and federal shakeups are making it harder for one Petersburg nonprofit to do its work.

An appeal by the state education department could cost Alaska $80 million; Petersburg will seek state funding for a harbor float replacement project; and a look from Petersburg's 11th annual Pedal-Paddle Battle fundraiser.