A boulder tumbled down the face of Mount Roberts early Wednesday, damaging one side of the Basin Road Trestle’s wooden railing and closing the road. Mattice says slides are more common in the fall, but warm, wet conditions this winter contributed to the rockfall — especially this weekend’s heavy rains.
Road crews say they’re still working to fully carve out the streets and haul snow away, after the city was hit with a trio of major storms this month. Some of Anchorage’s roads are maintained by the state of Alaska, and others by the city.
Anchorage and Mat-Su Borough schools and state offices are closed Thursday as a third major winter storm this month coated the area with snow overnight Wednesday. “In the past 11 days, we’ve had 41.1 inches of snow which is a lot for Anchorage,” Baines said.
The novel virus has only affected two people, both in Fairbanks. The "Alaskapox" was first identified in 2015 after a Fairbanks woman sought medical attention for a small skin lesion, pained fever and fatigue. In August, a second Fairbanks woman with no known connection to the first was found to have the virus. Scientists suspect both women may have gotten the virus from contact with small wild animals.
After a cold winter and spring, high temperatures around the Interior prompted birch tree buds to burst, sending record-setting levels of pollen into the air.
The Yukon, Tanana, Koyukuk, Kuskokwim and Susitna basins all have more snowpack than usual — and some are well above normal.
Ketchikan became the first city in Alaska to hit 80 degrees this year on Saturday, as three other cities in Southeast Alaska also set temperature records.
The Kuskokwim River breakup has led to widespread flooding, affecting roads and drinking water in several communities, with Kwethluk experiencing significant impacts.
Officials have been receiving reports of Steller sea lions hauling out on beaches in poor condition, but have been unable to retrieve the animals for research — largely because they are in remote areas.
Costco customers in Anchorage have recently started sharing online reports of ravens stealing groceries from their carts and the back of their pickup trucks, and biologists say the behavior could spread around town quickly.
The Alaska Division of Forestry is warning Alaskans in the Southcentral region of the state about high fire danger.
A historically powerful storm slammed into Western Alaska Friday night and into Saturday, bringing major flooding and high winds to a huge swath of coastal communities. By Saturday evening, the state said it had received no reports of injuries or deaths related to the storm. But damage had torn across hundreds of miles of Alaska’s coastline impacting communities all along the way. Alaskans described water flooding homes and roads. Wind tore off roofs. Houses floated off their foundations. Boats sank.
Unseasonably cold air swept into Alaska’s largest city Thursday, and forecasters expect it to stay through the weekend. The cold is plunging south into Alaska all the way from the North Pole, pushing a band of snow through Southcentral.
An immunocompromised man from Kenai Peninsula is the first known fatality from the Alaskapox virus, a rare zoonotic disease primarily transmitted through animal contact.
Both buildings were occupied during the collapses but everyone got out safely and no injuries were reported, according to Anchorage Fire Department spokeswoman Lexi Trainer.
The Spenard Builders Supply facility in Anchorage suffered a significant roof collapse due to heavy snow, causing no injuries but damaging the structure and nearby utilities.
A dog at the Kodiak Animal Shelter was euthanized after testing positive for canine distemper, leading to a quarantine and a halt on adoptions.
Biologists say the bison population took a big hit this winter. More than a dozen were hit and killed by vehicles because the animals were using roads in lieu of their usual trails, which were covered by deep snow and ice.
Schools in Southcentral Alaska are closed due to a snowstorm and power outages, with the Seward Highway being deemed "impassable" and numerous vehicles stranded.
“The midpoint of the Anchor River king salmon run was extremely late. These fish are really having some odd, unprecedented run timing and behavior."
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