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Photo by Erin Thompson / Peninsula Clarion KTOO, Juneau’s public radio station, is photographed July 11.

News

Grants to boost local emergency alert systems in question as public media agency closes

The change comes after Republican lawmakers voted last month to defund the Corporation for Public Broadcasting

An ultra-endurance long-range drone registered to Vanilla Unmanned crashed into a bluff near Ninilchik, Alaska on Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2025. (Contributed photo)

News

Drone crashes on beach in Southcentral Alaska during military exercises

NTSB is investigating the crash, which occurred Wednesday

Former Alaska House Rep. Ben Carpenter and Ray Southwell rise in support of speaker David Haeg during a town hall on the Alaska grand jury process in the Betty J. Glick Assembly Chambers in Soldotna, Alaska, on Monday, Aug. 18, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

News

State attorney general discusses new ‘investigative grand jury’ process at town hall

The State Department of Law in July rolled out a new, formalized process for Alaska residents to request…

Chloe Anderson for the Juneau Empire A black bear eats dandelions in a field on June 20 in Juneau.

Sports

Weekly Wonder: Bears: Beloved fuzzy Juneau residents — Part 1

My favorite sight, often visible from Egan drive, is the black bear

Broad-petaled gentian flowers were almost hidden in the other vegetation. (M.F. Wilson)

Sports

On the Trails: Late summer flowers

A stroll on the dike trail yielded floral signs that it was now late summer

Peter Segall / Juneau Empire File This April 12, 2022, photo shows former Alaska Senate Minority Leader Tom Begich, D-Anchorage. Begich announced his candidacy for Alaska governor this week.

News

Former state Sen. Tom Begich becomes 1st Democrat to indicate run for Alaska governor in 2026

The Anchorage resident, from a prominent political family, says he will conduct statewide listening tour, and focus on…

The Alaska Capitol is photographed Friday, July 11, 2025, in Juneau, Alaska. (Photo by Erin Thompson/Juneau Empire)

News

Alaska Legislature gavels in and out, taking no further action in special session

Legislative leaders say they’ve already accomplished their priorities

Russian President Vladimir Putin and President Donald Trump begin to leave the stage after making statements following their meeting in Anchorage, Alaska, Aug. 15, 2025. (Doug Mills/The New York Times)

News

‘Progress’ but no peace deal for Ukraine as Trump meets Putin in Alaska, without taking questions

World leaders end their historic meeting earlier than expected, and with few details about what occurred in a…

Protesters hold signs at the “No War Criminals” protest at The Whale in Bill Overstreet Park in Juneau, Alaska, on Friday, Aug. 15, 2025. (Photo provided by Juneau For Democracy)

News

Juneau protesters speak out against Putin visit

U.S. President Donald Trump met with Putin at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage on Friday

HESCO flood barriers installed near the banks of the Mendenhall River are photographed on Friday, Aug. 15, 2025, in Juneau, Alaska. Water levels rose by a record-breaking 16.65 feet on the morning of Aug. 13 during a glacial outburst from Suicide Basin. (Chloe Anderson/Juneau Empire)

News

‘What a difference a year makes’

Juneau flood recovery begins

President Donald Trump greets President Vladimir Putin of Russia as they met at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, on Friday, Aug. 15, 2025. (Doug Mills/The New York Times)

News

Trump and Putin put on a show of friendship but come away without a deal

ANCHORAGE — President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin reached no agreement to end the war in…

A map shows the location of Sunday's landslide. (Courtesy of Alaska Earthquake Center)

News

Alaska Earthquake Center says Sunday’s tsunami-causing slide was largest in decade

Sawyer Island sees a 100-foot wave; Harbor Island reports 20-foot waves

President Donald Trump shakes hands with President Vladimir Putin of Russia during a joint news conference in Helsinki, Finland, July 16, 2018. In the 2018 meeting, President Trump said he accepted President Vladimir Putin’s denial of election interference over the judgment of American intelligence agencies. (Doug Mills/The New York Times)

News

Alaska’s Ukrainian refugees brace for Putin’s arrival in their safe harbor

A variety of Alaskans have expressed misgivings.

In this screengrab, City and Borough of Juneau project managers for the HESCO barrier project — Carleton Shorey, Nick Druyvestein and Jeffrey Thole — speak during a Thursday, Aug. 14, 2025, press conference in the aftermath of the 2025 GLOF.

News

Unified Command switches from response to recovery in aftermath of flooding

The community will start to see preliminary damage assessment teams in affected neighborhoods

A Juneau Police Department vehicle. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire file photo)

News

Juneau Police Department names officer seen throwing man during arrest

The man was medevaced to a Seattle hospital following the incident

A young bear scampers up from the slough. (Photo by Dawn Halls/courtesy)

Sports

On the Trails: Fun in the sun

Sometimes there is good fun right outside one’s doorstep

Chloe Anderson / Juneau Empire A pod of killer whales is pictured in the Lynn Canal on June 3.

Sports

Weekly Wonder: The gray area around black and white

Orcinus orca loosely translates to “barrel-chested creature from hell”

As of 12:45 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2025, the Mendenhall River height was 10.78 feet and falling. (National Weather Service)

News

UPDATE: Suicide Basin flood threat ends, water recedes

Evacuated areas have now been opened to residents only

A flood inundation map shows areas in Juneau's Mendenhall Valley that are urged to evacuate during the 2025 annual glacial outburst flooding event, which is estimated to have begun Monday evening and expected to crest Wednesday afternoon.

News

Update: Mendenhall River crests, levels now falling

The release from Suicide Basin has come to an end

President Donald Trump and President Vladimir Putin of Russia during a joint news conference in Helsinki, Finland, July 16, 2018. President Trump is pushing to end the war in Ukraine, but analysts say the Russian leader could turn a hastily-planned meeting to his advantage. (Doug Mills/The New York Times)

News

Trump to meet Putin at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage

Trump was expected to make what amounted to a day trip to Alaska to meet with Putin.