News

Alaska Electric Light & Power facility in Lemon Creek on Tuesday afternoon. (Mari Kanagy / Juneau Empire)

Juneau returns to hydropower after outage sweeps city

The outage briefly shifted the city to generators, but no spike in power costs expected

Alaska Electric Light & Power facility in Lemon Creek on Tuesday afternoon. (Mari Kanagy / Juneau Empire)
U.S. Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrews conduct overflights of Kipnuk, Alaska, after coastal flooding impacted several western Alaska communities, Oct. 12, 2025. (U.S. Coast Guard photo courtesy of Air Station Kodiak)

Alaska flooding leaves 1 dead and 2 missing

At least 51 other people were rescued from Kwigillingok and the village of Kipnuk after the storm

  • Oct 14, 2025
  • New York Times
U.S. Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrews conduct overflights of Kipnuk, Alaska, after coastal flooding impacted several western Alaska communities, Oct. 12, 2025. (U.S. Coast Guard photo courtesy of Air Station Kodiak)
Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire file photo Juneau School District Superintendent Frank Hauser testifies in support of a Base Student Allocation increase on Jan. 29, 2025, at the Alaska State Capitol.

Juneau superintendent to resign at tail end of school year

Frank Hauser’s last day will be June 30, 2026

  • Oct 14, 2025
  • Juneau Empire Staff
Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire file photo Juneau School District Superintendent Frank Hauser testifies in support of a Base Student Allocation increase on Jan. 29, 2025, at the Alaska State Capitol.
National Weather Service screenshot Warning issued by the National Weather Service shows high flood risk along west and north coasts of Alaska.

Governor declares disaster as storm floods west and north Alaska communities

Governor Mike Dunleavy declared the 2025 October West Coast Storm a disaster this afternoon, after flooding hit communities along Alaska’s west and north coasts. Flooding… Continue reading

National Weather Service screenshot Warning issued by the National Weather Service shows high flood risk along west and north coasts of Alaska.
The ballot processing center in Thane receives all ballots on Election Day (Mari Kanagy / Juneau Empire)

Updated unofficial election results show sales tax cuts hold strong, candidate leads widening

Only one position has changed, while the rest remain consistent with first round results

The ballot processing center in Thane receives all ballots on Election Day (Mari Kanagy / Juneau Empire)
A black bear next to a trash bin. (Mark Levisay photo)

Juneau urges residents to secure trash as bears forage for fall

It’s been a relatively quiet year for bear calls, but experts stress prevention over punishment

A black bear next to a trash bin. (Mark Levisay photo)
Alex Bruell photo Mari Kanagy is a new reporter at the Juneau Empire.

A new recruit for the ‘Empire’

Mari Kanagy recently joined Juneau Empire staff as a reporter.

Alex Bruell photo Mari Kanagy is a new reporter at the Juneau Empire.
Campaign signs for Assembly candidate Nano Brooks hang on a fence in Mendenhall Valley. Brooks leads the race against incumbent Wade Bryant by just three votes in the preliminary results. (Mari Kanagy / Juneau Empire)

Assembly candidates react to preliminary election results

Early tallies show Proposition 2 passing by a wide margin and a razor-thin race for District 2

Campaign signs for Assembly candidate Nano Brooks hang on a fence in Mendenhall Valley. Brooks leads the race against incumbent Wade Bryant by just three votes in the preliminary results. (Mari Kanagy / Juneau Empire)
US DoT screenshot U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy hold a news conference at Newark Liberty International Airport on Oct. 6, 2025, to discuss the impacts of the ongoing government shutdown on the nation’s transportation systems.
Video

Essential Air Service in Alaska to run out of funding within days amid gov shutdown

Subsidies to support the Essential Air Service program are set to soon expire, as early as Sunday

  • Oct 8, 2025
  • By Ashley Wadhwani
US DoT screenshot U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy hold a news conference at Newark Liberty International Airport on Oct. 6, 2025, to discuss the impacts of the ongoing government shutdown on the nation’s transportation systems.
Video
“VOTE HERE” sign directs residents to the City Hall Assembly Chamber voting center on Election Day. (Mari Kanagy / Juneau Empire)

Preliminary election results favor cutting sales tax, tight race for Assembly

Unofficial election results for municipal elections are here

“VOTE HERE” sign directs residents to the City Hall Assembly Chamber voting center on Election Day. (Mari Kanagy / Juneau Empire)
The ballot drop box at City Hall Assembly Chambers is one of five stationed around Juneau. (Mari Kanagy / Juneau Empire)

Voters, poll workers reflect on Election Day

Juneau residents share their opinions on municipal ballot

The ballot drop box at City Hall Assembly Chambers is one of five stationed around Juneau. (Mari Kanagy / Juneau Empire)
Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion FILE - Alaska Lieutenant Governor Nancy Dahlstrom speaks during a celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Dena’ina Wellness Center in Kenai, Alaska, on Friday, July 12, 2024.

Alaska Lt. Governor certifies U.S. citizen voting requirement initiative

Lieutenant Governor Nancy Dahlstrom has certified application for Ballot Initiative 25USCV

Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion FILE - Alaska Lieutenant Governor Nancy Dahlstrom speaks during a celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Dena’ina Wellness Center in Kenai, Alaska, on Friday, July 12, 2024.
A local-mail in ballot is deposited in a drop box. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire file photo)

Juneau Votes 2025: Here’s what you need to know for election day

Juneau residents are voting to fill three seats on the Assembly and another three on the Board of Education, along with deciding on three ballot… Continue reading

A local-mail in ballot is deposited in a drop box. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire file photo)
FILE — Cew of the USS Hampton, a Los Angeles class submarine, out on the ice after surfacing in the Beaufort Sea during Operation Ice Camp, March 16, 2024. The Trump administration is emphasizing defense concerns instead of climate research in the rapidly warming Arctic region. (Kenny Holston/The New York Times)

In the Arctic, U.S. shifts focus from climate research to security

The Arctic is warming nearly four times faster than the rest of the planet and is one of the most rapidly changing places on Earth.… Continue reading

  • Oct 6, 2025
  • New York Times
FILE — Cew of the USS Hampton, a Los Angeles class submarine, out on the ice after surfacing in the Beaufort Sea during Operation Ice Camp, March 16, 2024. The Trump administration is emphasizing defense concerns instead of climate research in the rapidly warming Arctic region. (Kenny Holston/The New York Times)
Brochures available on Oct. 17, 2023, at the Youth and Elders Conference in Anchorage give information on safer sex and avoidance of sexually transmitted infections. Alaska has long had among the nation’s highest rates for some sexually transmitted infections, but case numbers declined in 2024. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Annual Alaska disease report shows dip in sexually transmitted infections

Cases of sexually transmitted infections declined in Alaska from 2023 to 2024, though as in past years, they continue to dominate the state’s annual infectious… Continue reading

  • Oct 6, 2025
  • Yereth Rosen Alaska Beacon
Brochures available on Oct. 17, 2023, at the Youth and Elders Conference in Anchorage give information on safer sex and avoidance of sexually transmitted infections. Alaska has long had among the nation’s highest rates for some sexually transmitted infections, but case numbers declined in 2024. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
Signage outside the Capitol Hill visitors center notifies the public of its closure due to the government shutdown in Washington, on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025. The first government shutdown in nearly six years left federal agencies in flux and many of their employees in a state of confusion on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, as they received last-minute and conflicting instructions from managers. (Alex Kent/The New York Times)

Alaska braces for federal government shutdown

The shutdown will take its toll on government land, services and workers

Signage outside the Capitol Hill visitors center notifies the public of its closure due to the government shutdown in Washington, on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025. The first government shutdown in nearly six years left federal agencies in flux and many of their employees in a state of confusion on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, as they received last-minute and conflicting instructions from managers. (Alex Kent/The New York Times)
Telephone Hill as seen from above (Photo courtesy of City and Borough of

Telephone Hill eviction delayed by one month in Juneau

The announcement came just days before the Oct. 1, the previous eviction deadline

Telephone Hill as seen from above (Photo courtesy of City and Borough of
A photo provided by the National Park Service shows 32 Chunk, a bear at Katmai National Park and Preserve in Alaska, Sept. 15, 2025. Fat Bear Week, a bracket-style competition to pick the bear best suited for winter at Katmai National Park and Preserve in Alaska, was won by Chunk. (The National Park Service/T Carmack via The New York Times) — NO SALES; EDITORIAL USE ONLY —

Meet this year’s Fat Bear contest winner

After a weeklong battle to the finish, this year’s Fat Bear Week victor has been crowned. Congratulations to 32 Chunk, a brown bear who weighed… Continue reading

  • Oct 2, 2025
A photo provided by the National Park Service shows 32 Chunk, a bear at Katmai National Park and Preserve in Alaska, Sept. 15, 2025. Fat Bear Week, a bracket-style competition to pick the bear best suited for winter at Katmai National Park and Preserve in Alaska, was won by Chunk. (The National Park Service/T Carmack via The New York Times) — NO SALES; EDITORIAL USE ONLY —
Contributed/UAF Xochitl Muñoz (left) is a master’s student in paleontology at UAF; Willa Johnson (right) is pursuing a master’s degree in marine biology in the College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences.

Alaska graduate students awarded national research fellowship for work in sciences

Willa Johnson and Xochitl Muñoz are recipients of the 2025-2026 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships

  • Oct 2, 2025
  • By News Staff Peninsula
Contributed/UAF Xochitl Muñoz (left) is a master’s student in paleontology at UAF; Willa Johnson (right) is pursuing a master’s degree in marine biology in the College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences.
Photo courtesy of CBJ Jonathan Snyder, wildlife biologist at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Conservation Investment, made closing remarks.

$1M in upgrades celebrated at Hank Harmon Public Range

The only outdoor public use range in Juneau has gotten some ‘much-needed’ upgrades, says project manager

Photo courtesy of CBJ Jonathan Snyder, wildlife biologist at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Conservation Investment, made closing remarks.