Taylor Heckart
@theckart.bsky.social
Reporter in Petersburg ✍️ 📻 Lifelong Alaskan ⛰️ 🌲
An Alaska Marine Lines barge that was taking on water off the coast of British Columbia has continued its journey south to Seattle. The barge was spotted floating lower than normal last week near Bella Bella, about 260 miles south of Ketchikan.
Alaska Marine Lines barge continues south after taking on water off British Columbia
The company said in an email that the barge was damaged during transit but was “secure” and “not sinking.”
akpub.io
In the screen adaptation, the title characters, Ch’idzigyaak and Sa’, speak to each other in Gwich’in. In fact, the film is entirely in the Athabascan language, which is considered severely endangered. (From KUAC - Fairbanks)
First screen adaptation of 'Two Old Women' told in severely endangered Athabascan language
The new film premiered in Hawai'i last month, with homecoming showings scheduled in Alaska in December.
ktoo.org
KYUK, the station that kept dozens of Western Alaska villages informed during Typhoon Halong, is now cutting staff after losing all federal funding.
Alaska station that covered devastating storm cuts jobs
A public TV and radio station in Western Alaska serves dozens of villages damaged by Typhoon Halong. But with federal funding eliminated, KYUK makes severe cuts to its staff and news department.
akpub.io
Anchorage election administrator Liz Edwards said the voting system has been in place since April, and was not a “first of its scale” experiment the city was about to conduct, as the Times reported. https://akpub.io/3LMkM6J
‘Inaccurate’ New York Times piece spotlights Anchorage’s electronic voting system, officials say
Anchorage election administrator Liz Edwards said the voting system has been in place since April, and was not a “first of its scale” experiment the city was about to conduct, as the Times reported.
akpub.io
The electric utility for the Anchorage area has approved plans to build what could be largest solar farm in Alaska, near the village of Tyonek.
Chugach Electric moves ahead with plans to develop what could be Alaska’s largest solar farm
The effort come as other renewable projects struggle amid pressure from the Trump administration.
adn.com
Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport is among 40 airports across the country forced to slash air traffic by 10% starting Friday as the government shutdown continues.
Anchorage International among 40 airports forced to cut flights due to government shutdown
Officials at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport say they’re working to minimize impacts to passengers and cargo operations.
akpub.io
Alaska regional air carrier Kenai Aviation shut down operations abruptly on Monday, citing financial insolvency.
Regional air carrier Kenai Aviation announces immediate shutdown
The airline’s owner said Monday that the company was struggling under a debt burden that had become untenable.
adn.com
Followed up with the Coast Guard on this— they sent a statement saying, “the VHF-FM marine radio will not be down the entire 96 hours. It will experience a brief interruption, lasting only 3-5 minutes, during a scheduled upgrade within that 96-hour time frame.” www.kfsk.org/2025/11/03/c...
Coast Guard may briefly be unable to hear distress calls in Southeast Alaska this week - KFSK
According to a statement from the U.S. Coast Guard, they may be unable to hear distress calls on the region’s emergency VHF channel for 3-5 minutes sometime this week.
kfsk.org
James Brooks Cascade@alaska.bsky.social · 11mo agoIf you're in distress, the Coast Guard may not be able to hear you on the radio in Southeast Alaska this week.
The news comes amid the Trump administration’s effort to dramatically slash federal spending – including by proposed cuts to key weather and climate programs within NOAA. (From KHNS - Haines)
NOAA cancels funding for data collection crucial to tsunami warning systems
The Alaska Earthquake Center has long provided NOAA with seismic data for tsunami monitoring and warning purposes. That work will wind down in November, after the federal agency said it can no longer…
ktoo.org
A friendly reminder that tonight we "fall back" one hour. While setting clocks that don't do it on their own, change your smoke detector & NOAA Weather Radio batteries too!
I need you to know that the Knights of Ni have been accused of Medicaid fraud: alaskabeacon.com/briefs/alask... #akleg #Alaska
Alaska prosecutors charge Knights of Ni with significant Medicaid fraud | Alaska Beacon
Seven felony charges have been filed against a 'Monty Python' named LLC and its owner, alleging more than half a million dollars in fraud.
alaskabeacon.com
A seal that was rescued near Petersburg returned home last week to be released into the wild! Bravo the seal was welcomed back by a crowd of more than a hundred people. www.kfsk.org/2025/10/28/s...
Seal rescued near Petersburg in May released back into the wild - KFSK
After several weeks of treatment at the Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward, the seal returned home on Oct. 23. Over a hundred people gathered at Sandy Beach to see the nearly five-month-old Bravo get rel...
kfsk.org
It looks like the photos didn’t quite come through… let’s try that again.
More than 66,000 Alaskans will lose food stamps within weeks if government shutdown continues, the state of Alaska is warning, writes James Brooks (@alaska.bsky.social) for the @alaskaaeacon.com. alaskabeacon.com/briefs/more-...
More than 66,000 Alaskans will lose food stamps within weeks if government shutdown continues | Alaska Beacon
Nationwide, more than 42 million people could lose federally paid and state administered support that keeps them from going hungry.
alaskabeacon.com
Some 90% of the structures in Kipnuk were destroyed by the storm, along with 35% of buildings in Kwigillingok, according to the state Department of Transportation and Public Facilities. (From @alaskapublic.org)
Evacuations wind down as focus in Western Alaska shifts to recovery and relief
Hundreds have been evacuated in military helicopters and planes to Bethel and Anchorage. Now, state officials are assessing what it'll take to rebuild villages hit hard by the storm.
ktoo.org
Folks have been focused on the developing disaster in southwest Alaska, but America's farthest-west community is suffering, too: Adak has been without power for two weeks because of problems with the local generator. www.kucb.org/regional/202...
Adak residents ‘getting by’ after two weeks without power
A replacement generator is currently being sent on a barge, but it’s not scheduled to arrive until Nov. 3 – weather dependent.
kucb.org
"It's been a really mixed bag of emotions to be doing important work and trying to get the vital information that people need about disaster relief," @sgsmly.bsky.social of KYUK told PBS News Hour's Geoff Bennett. "My position itself will be going to five hours a week in the beginning of the year."
Sage Smiley, news director of KYUK in Bethel @sgsmly.bsky.social briefs NPR on the evacuation and devastation of western Alaska. People are not just displaced from their homes but also their traditional ways of life. www.npr.org/2025/10/16/n...
Mass evacuations underway in Western Alaska after storm devastates communities
Hundreds of people are being evacuated from the Alaska villages hardest hit by the remnants of Typhoon Halong over the weekend.
npr.org
A U.S. Coast Guard commander compared the devastation in Southwest Alaska villages over the weekend to the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. “This took people into peril, where folks were swimming, floating, trying to find debris to hold onto in the cover of darkness," Capt. Culpepper said.
Officials say storm 'completely devastated' Western Alaska communities
A Coast Guard commander recounts scenes of Alaskans swimming in floodwaters in the middle of the night, in search of debris to hold onto.
akpub.io
If you’re in Petersburg, Cooper Landing, Seward, Ketchikan, Tok, Unalaska, Soldotna, Skagway, and Bethel, you should get free access to a news database through your library! There are 20+ Alaska news publications in there, including many that are normally paywalled. www.kfsk.org/2025/10/13/g...
Grant funding will give 15 Alaska libraries free access to many paywalled newspapers - KFSK
Fifteen libraries across Alaska will be gaining access to a large online database of national and in-state news sources. The Alaska Library Network received a $10,250 grant from the Atwood Foundation,...
kfsk.org
Some residents are reportedly unaccounted for or trapped in houses as a major storm brings high water and winds to some Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta communities. The storm is expected to move north and continue into Monday.
Live updates: A major storm is bringing dangerous flooding and hurricane-force winds to Western Alaska
The remnants of Typhoon Halong have already caused damaging flooding in Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. The storm is expected to move north and continue into Monday.
akpub.io
The resolution also asks the federal government to loosen regulations for how Alaska Native subsistence hunters can use harvested sea otters. (From KFSK - Petersburg)
Petersburg joins other Southeast Alaska communities in asking for stronger sea otter management
Sea otters were once wiped out in Southeast Alaska due to the fur trade, but their population has skyrocketed since reintroduction in the 1960s.
ktoo.org
Here are four graphics that show how much the PFD's purchasing power has changed over the years. UAA economist Brett Watson says they tell us "as much about how we think about inflation or the things that we buy as it does about the dividend itself."
Four graphics that chart the purchasing power of your PFD over the decades
University of Alaska economist Brett Watson looked at what you can buy with this year’s $1,000 dividend compared with 1982 and 2003.
alaskapublic.org
For those in southeast #Alaska watching the wind & rain weather system, @nws.noaa.gov Juneau has a live #akwx update on the hurricane force low storm system at 8:30am on YouTube: www.youtube.com/live/ZJ3GOJY...
Hurricane Force Low update, Friday morning 9/26/2025
YouTube video by NWS WFO Juneau
youtube.com
For years, a national database that tracks and maps landslides has had a major hole: Alaska. But that’s about to change.
A new map shows where landslides have happened across Alaska
The state released an inventory this week that pinpoints thousands of past slides. The aim is to better understand the risk – and prepare for the future.
alaskapublic.org
A storm moving through Southeast Alaska is causing high winds that will continue into Wednesday evening in Juneau. It’s resulting in power outages and fallen trees. Multiple cruise ships have canceled port calls.
Severe wind causes fallen trees, power outages in Juneau
Three cruise ships that were scheduled to arrive in Juneau canceled their stops ahead of the storm Tuesday night.
ktoo.org
Advocates say it’s finally time to connect Alaska’s largest city to bedroom communities to its north using commuter rail service. A proposal from the Alaska Commuter Rail Coalition is fairly straightforward, though it’s still unclear who will pay for it.
Could commuter rail between Mat-Su and Anchorage become a reality? Advocates push for a pilot project
If built, the pilot project would have two trains running daily from Wasilla to Anchorage and back again on existing rail that’s maintained by the Alaska Railroad Corporation.
alaskapublic.org
KFSK’s summer intern Hannah Weaver got the chance to head over to Coffman Cove on Prince of Wales Island recently. She put together many great radio pieces, including this story on the new disc golf course! www.kfsk.org/2025/08/15/f...
First Coffman Cove disc golf course opens with a par-ty - KFSK
Prince of Wales Island hosted its first-ever disc golf tournament on Aug. 9. The new course in Coffman Cove is plenty challenging — and plenty fun.
kfsk.org
On Sunday, tens or hundreds of millions of tons of rock fell into Tracy Arm, a deep, narrow fjord south of Juneau popular with sightseers. It set off a colossal tsunami, stranding and nearly washing away a group of kayakers who had camped on a nearby island. alaskapublic.org/news/environ...
'Pure chaos out of nowhere': Mega-landslide and tsunami rip through Tracy Arm south of Juneau
Waves that may have reached 100 feet scoured an inlet that’s frequented by cruise ships, tour vessels and pleasure boats.
alaskapublic.org
Happy Friday! Here’s a fun story I’ve been working on this week! www.kfsk.org/2025/08/08/c...
Canadian kayakers pit stop in Petersburg during a thousand-mile expedition - KFSK
Michelle Martin and Heather Grant McLoughlin are more than two months into a kayaking expedition from Vancouver Island to Glacier Bay. The Canadian women have paddled hundreds of miles through the Ins...
kfsk.org