Ketchikan tourist sues borough after scooter tips over on public bus - Anchorage news - NewsLocker (2024)

Ketchikan buses sit parked outside the Ketchikan Gateway Borough maintenance facility. (Eric Stone/KRBD)
A 91-year-old cruise-ship tourist is suing the Ketchikan Gateway Borough for negligence after his mobility scooter tipped over on a public bus.
The complaintwas filed in federal court in Alaska on May 8. It says that Donald Gillingham of Montana and his wife were on a cruise that docked in Ketchikan in September. Gillingham has limited mobility, so they rented a motorized scooter and bo

Newscast – Friday, May 24, 2024

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In this newscast:A group of paddlers from Kasaan prepare for a 10-day, over 250-mile journey to Juneau for Celebration in canoes they carved themselves, making stops in communities like Wrangell and Petersburg along the way.
Alaskans looking to invest in solar panels or other renewable energy infrastructure for their homes will likely have some new options in the next few years. The state is setting up a new so-cal

Juneau Afternoon: June events including Symphony POPS, Juneau Fine Arts Camp, Cancer Connection’s Celebration Walk, and the Dolly Dash Fun Run

The Dolly Dash is happening Saturday, June 8, in Juneau.Friday, May 24, 2024 — Full EpisodeOn today’s program:The Juneau Symphony’s upcoming summer concert – “BOOM”The Dolly Dash Family Fun Run supporting the Dolly Parton Imagination Library program via SEA-AEYCInformation on National Cancer Survivors Day from Cancer ConnectionA preview of Theater Alaska’s upcoming educational camps in partnership with the Juneau Fine Arts Camp
Bostin Christopher hosts t

Homer cyclist wins national title in road race championship

Kristen Faulkner. (EF Education-Cannondale)
Kristen Faulkner, 31,wonthis year’s Elite Women’s Road Race in West Virginia. She finished the 127-kilometer race in under three and a half hours, beating the next racer by almost a minute.
While she says she competed in sports her entire life, the Homer athlete began her cycling journey seven years ago in New York. Faulkner worked in the finance industry at the time and went to an introductory cycling clinic in Central Park.
&l

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Garden Talk: Juneau’s Jensen-Olson Arboretum celebrates Public Gardens Day and Primula Day

Primula chugensis. (Jensen-Olson Arboretum)https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/24GT_Primulas.mp3
Green things have been sprouting up all over Juneau in the past month and a half. Along with the warmer weather comes a burst of color and life at the Jensen-Olson Arboretum.
Ginger Hudson, the arboretum’s manager, recently spoke with KTOO’s Garden Talk about what the arboretum has planned for Memorial Day weekend.
On Saturday, the arboretum will celebrate both Nationa

Anchorage 3rd grader wins statewide Doodle for Google art competition

Rabbit Creek Elementary School third grader Lennex Czajkowski holds her winning Doodle for Google artwork. (Valerie Lake/Alaska Public Media)
A third grader from Rabbit Creek Elementary School in Anchorage is Alaska’s winner in the 15th annual Doodle for Google nationwide art competition.
In January, Google asked K-12 students across the country to create a doodle showing their wish for the next 25 years. Lennex Czajkowski’s won for her piece titled “For the World not to be Pol

Alaska lawmakers pass child care legislation to buoy sector ‘in crisis’

Smocks draped over an easel in a classroom at Hillcrest Children’s Center on April 18, 2024, in Anchorage. (Photo by Claire Stremple/Alaska Beacon)
About a dozen preschoolers played in the snowmelt in the yard of Hillcrest Children’s Center in Anchorage this April. Most were zipped into heavy duty outerwear against the spring chill. All of them were splattered with dirt.
“One of our values is mud,” said Christina Eubanks, the center’s director, before an exuberant a

Newscast – Thursday, May 23, 2024

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In this newscast:Members of Juneau’s Assembly decided to lower the city’s property tax rate next year,
Alaska Congresswoman Mary Peltola introduced two bills that aim to reduce the number of salmon that the pollock fleet catches by accident,
Leaders from Ketchikan’s Indigenous communities spoke passionately against inauthentic totem poles at a city council meeting

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Juneau Assembly agrees to lower property tax rate next year

Assembly member Wade Bryson, Mayor Beth Weldon and Assembly member Michelle Hale chat during a break at a finance meeting on Wednesday, May 22, 2024. (Clarise Larson/KTOO)https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/23millrate_01.mp3
Members of the Juneau Assembly decided to lower the city’s property tax rate next year.But, that means they had less money to work with in the city budget, so they had to use some creative thinking to cover costs.
At a meeting Wednesday night, the Assembl

Shell abandons North Slope oil leases, raising questions about the industry’s future in Alaska

A Shell station in Anchorage. (Photo by Nathaniel Herz/Northern Journal)
Imagine, for a moment, that you’re the head of a publicly traded oil company.
In your corner office, a team of executives has come to pitch you on a new, possibly lucrative drilling opportunity. It’s in a relatively politically stable country; the local tax regime is reasonable, if not generous. Other companies have found huge deposits in the area, and your own geologists are telling you that there’s likel

A Juneau inventor wants to bring ocean energy to your outlets

Lance McMullen tests an early prototype of his tidal generator in Juneau in October 2023. (Photo by Anna Canny/KTOO)https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/23tidalecon-pkg.wav
Inventor Lance McMullen has a beautiful house on Douglas Island. But he spends almost all of his time in the garage.
On one side of the room there’s camping gear, a set of winter tires and a small couch. On the other, an enormous 3D printer and dozens of boxes and garbage bags filled with pieces of br

Bronson concedes Anchorage mayoral race to LaFrance

Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson speaking during the Anchorage Mayoral Debate in the Alaska Public Media building on Thursday, May 2, 2024. (Matt Faubion/Alaska Public Media)
Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson has conceded to challenger Suzanne LaFrance in the city’s runoff mayoral election.
“As I transition out of office, I am committed to ensuring a smooth transition to Mayor-Elect LaFrance and her team,” Bronson said in a statement Thursday.
His concession comes two days after LaFranc

Eaglecrest Ski Area general manager resigns at board’s request

Eaglecrest Ski Area Manager Dave Scanlan speaks during an Assembly finance meeting on Saturday, April 6, 2024. (Clarise Larson/KTOO)
The general manager of Juneau’s Eaglecrest Ski Area, Dave Scanlan, resigned from his role Wednesday night at the request of the ski area’s board.
The announcement came Thursday morning after the board held a special meeting on Wednesday to evaluate Scanlan’s performance. His resignation came after the board met in an executive session.
The b

6 key facts about abortion laws and the 2024 election

*Weeks since Day 1 of last menstrual period (Source: KFF analysis as of May 2, 2024/Credit: Hilary Fung/NPR)https://ondemand.npr.org/anon.npr-mp3/npr/atc/2024/05/20240520_atc_abortion_rights_across_the_country_update.mp3?d=418&size=6704110&e=1252771024
In the nearly two years since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, abortion access has been in an almost constant state of flux.
State laws keep changing – with new bans taking effect in some places while new protections are ena

Peltola sponsors a bill to limit salmon bycatch. The pollock industry calls it ‘unworkable.’

Rep. Mary Peltola in her Washington, D.C. office. (Liz Ruskin/Alaska Public Media)
Alaska Congresswoman Mary Peltola introduced two bills Wednesday that aim to deliver on one of her campaign themes: Reducing the number of salmon that the Bering Sea fishing fleet catches by accident.
One of the bills would curtail the use of fishing nets that scrape sensitive parts of the sea floor. It would require regional fisheries management councils to designate bottom trawl zones and limit that kind of fish

Meet Scott Kendall, father of Alaska’s ranked choice voting and lightning rod for the right

Attorney Scott Kendall at his office in downtown Anchorage. (Matt Faubion/Alaska Public Media)
Anchorage attorney Scott Kendall can’t believe the names he’s called.
“Yeah, ‘the Soros-funded, Marxist attorney,’ — and I’m not Marxist. Obviously. That’s an anti- Semitic trope,” Kendall said recently. “I’m not funded by George Soros. Never met him. Never met anyone associated with him.”
Kendall, 49, is at the center of two hot p

Juneau Afternoon: ‘Our Past, Our Present, Our Voices’ multigenerational Indigenous art show to open June 5

Poster Image for “Our Past, Our Present, Our Voices” produced by the Black and White Raven Company opening on June 5 at the Alaska Robotics Gallery.
On today’s program:“Our Past, Our Present, Our Voices,” a multi-generational Indigenous art showOpening June 5 from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Alaska Robotics on 134 N Franklin St. This exhibition will showcase the diverse talents of Indigenous artists spanning generations and art styles.
Juneau Audubon Society and their summ

Newscast – Wednesday, May 22, 2024

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In this newscast:One Juneau inventor hopes to tap into the power of the ocean with a small tidal generator that’s poised to hit the market next year,
Alaska’s governor could soon sign a bill into law that would establish a task force to look into the economic crisis facing the state’s seafood industry, but one legislator said leaders missed an opportunity to give tribes a greater voice,
Suzanne LaFrance

Coast Guard says a wave likely overwhelmed charter boat near Sitka last year, killing 5

Morgan Robidou poses with his boat in October, 2022. Robidou and one of his passengers, 61-year old Robert Solis, still remain missing following the accident on May 28, 2023. (Facebook image)
The U.S. Coast Guard presented its findings last week onthe sinking of a charter boat near Sitkathat killed five people last year, saying the boat likely capsized after it was hit by a wave.
The Awakin was a very typical charter boat for Sitka: 31 feet long, aluminum hull, twin 250-horsepower ou

Only incumbents seek Juneau’s legislative seats as deadline approaches

Juneau House Rep. Andi Story (left), Rep. Sara Hannan (upper right) and Sen. Jesse Kiehl (lower right) during the 2024 legislative session. (Clarise Larson/KTOO)
The deadline to file to run for one of Juneau’s seats in the Alaska Legislature is fast approaching. But, just a little over a week out, only incumbent lawmakers have done so.
Juneau has one seat in the Alaska Senate, currently filled by Jesse Kiehl, and two seats in the Alaska House of Representatives, filled by Sara Hannan

A big survey asked Americans about their finances. Here are some trouble spots

Rising prices remain a top concern for Americans, according to a new survey by the Federal Reserve. But 72% of adults say they’re living comfortably financially or at least doing OK. (Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images)
Americans overwhelmingly say they’re “doing at least OK financially,” but most remain worried about rising prices, and 1 in 6 says they have bills they can’t pay, according to a report released Tuesday by the Federal Reserve.
Each year the Fed su

At a brief camp-in, Haines residents urge the state to revive camping at Portage Cove

Alaska State Parks closed the campground in 2022 in an effort to cut costs. Photo courtesy of Sue Libenson. (Max Graham/KHNS)
It’s the second summer since Alaska State Parks banned camping at the Portage Cove state recreation area in Haines. But on Friday night, a smattering of tents popped up there. A few dozen people showed their support for reopening the park to tent campers.
Mayor Tom Morphet organized the event, calling it a camp-in. He said he was acting in his unofficial capacity as

He fell ill on a cruise. Before he boarded the rescue boat, they handed him the bill

On the last full day of a Bahamas excursion, Vincent Wasney had three epileptic seizures. While being evacuated, he received a bill for expenses incurred during the cruise. (Kristen Norman for KFF Health News)https://ondemand.npr.org/anon.npr-mp3/npr/atc/2024/05/20240521_atc_he_fell_ill_on_a_cruise_before_he_boarded_the_rescue_boat_they_handed_him_the_bill.mp3?d=337&size=5408018&e=1252428534&t=progseg&seg=13&p=2
Vincent Wasney and his fiancée, Sarah Eberlein, had never

Alaska Legislature passes bill enabling employers to use saliva tests for drugs, alcohol

Sen. Jesse Bjorkman, R-Nikiski, speaks at a March 19, 2024, news conference. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
More Alaska employers may use saliva for drug and alcohol testing, thanks to a new bill that passed the Alaska Legislature on the final day of the regular session.
Awaiting Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s consideration isSenate Bill 196, which adds saliva testing to the state’s “safe harbor” laws for drug and alcohol testing by employers.
Sen. Jesse Bjorkman, R-Ni

Newscast – Tuesday, May 21, 2024

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In this newscast:Security footage posted online shows Anchorage police killing an armed man last week, but a witness who owns the camera says her footage contradicts what officers say happened in the lead up to the shooting,
The first Alaska woman has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences,
The remote village of Golovin is the subject of a new documentary that shines a light on the unique hardships experienced

Juneau Afternoon: Michael Franti and Spearhead to play in Juneau on August 6

Michael Franti and Spearhead will play Juneau on August 6, 2024Tuesday, May 21, 2024 — Full EpisodeOn today’s program:Cabin Door Productions Cheri Snook on the upcoming August concert with Michael Franti and SpearheadNAMI Juneau with information on Mental Health MonthThe Pottery Jungle is offering community classes and Youth Pottery Summer CampSEARHC with information on Women’s Health Month
Bostin Christopher hosts the conversation. Juneau Afternoon airs at 3:00 p.m. on KTOO an

Native advocates celebrate passage of bill to address Alaska’s MMIP crisis

A group sings on the steps of the Alaska Capitol in Juneau for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Awareness Day on May 5, 2022. (Paige Sparks/KTOO)
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One of the bills that crossed the finish line in the final hours of the Alaska Legislature is what advocates for missing and murdered Indigenous people call a major milestone.
The bill was launched by Sen. Donny Olson, an Inupiaq and a Democrat from Golovin, but it

Suzanne LaFrance declares victory in Anchorage mayor’s race

Mayoral candidate Suzanne LaFrance stands for her closing statements during a debate held at the Petroleum Club of Anchorage on April 29, 2024. On Tuesday, LaFrance declared victory in the election. (Matt Faubion/Alaska Public Media)
Suzanne LaFrance declared victory in Anchorage’s mayoral race on Tuesday, one week after voting ended in the runoff election.
“Over the coming days and weeks, my team and I will be sharing more about the transition, what’s ahead, and how to get inv

Family of man fatally shot by Anchorage police demands release of body camera footage

Anchorage police fatally shot 34-year-old Kristopher Handy on May 13, 2024. (Courtesy of Handy family)
The family of a man fatally shot by Anchorage police last week is calling on the city to release body-worn camera footage of the incident.
Anchorage Police Chief Bianca Cross initially said the man, 34-year-old Kristopher Handy, pointed a gun at officers before they shot and killed him. But a neighbor later released security footage that she says shows Handy did not raise his gun.
His brother,

Homer man dies in moose attack

Dale Chorman posing in front of a tree. (Courtesy Dale Chorman’s family)
A Homer man died Sunday morning after being attacked by a moose.
According to an online dispatch posted by Alaska State Troopers, a cow moose charged at 70-year-old Dale Chorman and another person.
Journalist and writer Tom Kizzia was asked by Chorman’s family to speak on their behalf. He said Chorman and his friend were looking at newborn moose calves on Chorman’s property located east of Homer near Fernw