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The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, contracting with Coastal Helicopters, works to reduce avalanche risk on Thane Road by setting off avalanches in a controlled fashion on Feb. 5, 2021.(Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire File)

Thane Road closure scheduled for avalanche hazard reduction

Weather conditions cause cancellation.

The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, contracting with Coastal Helicopters, works to reduce avalanche risk on Thane Road by setting off avalanches in a controlled fashion on Feb. 5, 2021.(Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire File)
Doctors at Bartlett Regional Hospital, seen here in this January 2021 photo, often call consultants and specialist for medical advice, but a supreme court case out of Minnesota could make that dynamic legally questionable. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire File)

Bill seeks to shield doctors from liability when consulting

‘Curbside consultations’ are protected under proposal.

Doctors at Bartlett Regional Hospital, seen here in this January 2021 photo, often call consultants and specialist for medical advice, but a supreme court case out of Minnesota could make that dynamic legally questionable. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire File)
Teaser

Opinion: We do not have another decade to waste without protecting every Alaskan

Let’s end the cruel, and inhumane legal discrimination against our fellow Alaskans

  • Apr 14, 2021
  • By Beth Kerttula
Teaser
Secretary of the Interior Secretary Deb Haaland attends a Cabinet meeting with President Joe Biden in the East Room of the White House, Thursday, April 1, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo / Evan Vucci)

Biden taps former Obama official as deputy at Interior Dept.

Nominee grew up in Alaska.

Secretary of the Interior Secretary Deb Haaland attends a Cabinet meeting with President Joe Biden in the East Room of the White House, Thursday, April 1, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo / Evan Vucci)
Dr. Lauren Wild smiles during a recent whale necropsy near Sitka. Wild is a UAS researcher and fisheries professor, and yes, you can call her Dr. Wild. (Courtesy Photo / Bethany Sonsini Goodrich and Lione Clare, operating under NOAA Stranding Agreement MMHSRP #18786-04)
Capital City Weekly

Resilient Peoples & Place: What can one find within the body of a whale?

Within their perished bodies, whales may contain secrets to their species.

Dr. Lauren Wild smiles during a recent whale necropsy near Sitka. Wild is a UAS researcher and fisheries professor, and yes, you can call her Dr. Wild. (Courtesy Photo / Bethany Sonsini Goodrich and Lione Clare, operating under NOAA Stranding Agreement MMHSRP #18786-04)
Arriving passengers walk past a sign in the arrivals area at Heathrow Airport in London, during England’s third national lockdown since the coronavirus outbreak began. On Tuesday, City and Borough of Juneau officials said the city has confirmed the first local case of a COVID-19 variant first detected in Britain. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)

State lab ID’s British COVID variant in Juneau resident

Public health officials say variant acquired via community spread

Arriving passengers walk past a sign in the arrivals area at Heathrow Airport in London, during England’s third national lockdown since the coronavirus outbreak began. On Tuesday, City and Borough of Juneau officials said the city has confirmed the first local case of a COVID-19 variant first detected in Britain. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)
A shop on South Franklin Street in downtown Juneau has its doors open on Tuesday, April 13, 2021. In a normal year shops like this would be preparing for the summer tourist season and the thousands of tourists brought to Juneau daily by cruise ships. But the growth of the cruising in Alaska has some residents concerned about the regions dependence on the industry. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

Ballot initiatives seek to curb cruise ships

Three initiatives for city election.

A shop on South Franklin Street in downtown Juneau has its doors open on Tuesday, April 13, 2021. In a normal year shops like this would be preparing for the summer tourist season and the thousands of tourists brought to Juneau daily by cruise ships. But the growth of the cruising in Alaska has some residents concerned about the regions dependence on the industry. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
This photo shows the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine sits on a table at a pop up vaccinations site the Albanian Islamic Cultural Center, in the Staten Island borough of New York. The U.S. is recommending a “pause” in administration of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine to investigate reports of potentially dangerous blood clots. (AP Photo / Mary Altaffer)

CDC freeze on Johnson and Johnson vaccine sets clinics scrambling

The odds of being affected are vanishingly rare, but CDC says better safe than sorry.

This photo shows the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine sits on a table at a pop up vaccinations site the Albanian Islamic Cultural Center, in the Staten Island borough of New York. The U.S. is recommending a “pause” in administration of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine to investigate reports of potentially dangerous blood clots. (AP Photo / Mary Altaffer)
A sign seen on a downtown Juneau business reminds customers that masks are required. As the percentage of vaccinated community members rises, officials are looking to the future and considering which COVID-19 mitigations to jettison and when. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

How will climbing vaccine rates affect the local mask mandate, traveler testing?

City officials consider future of mitigation measures.

A sign seen on a downtown Juneau business reminds customers that masks are required. As the percentage of vaccinated community members rises, officials are looking to the future and considering which COVID-19 mitigations to jettison and when. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
Courtesy Photo / Kristin Bartlett Juneau School District Charlee Gribbon, infection preventionist at Bartlett Regional Hospital, vaccinates Juneau School District staff member Megan Freas. Freas was one of 86 people to get vaccinated on Friday as Juneau Public Schools hosted onsite vaccine clinics at Thunder Mountain High School and Juneau-Douglas Yadaa.at Kalé High School. Students age 16 and older and staff members were eligible to be vaccinated at the clinic.

CBJ introduces new vaccine strategy

Pop up clinics to replace mass vaccination clinics

Courtesy Photo / Kristin Bartlett Juneau School District Charlee Gribbon, infection preventionist at Bartlett Regional Hospital, vaccinates Juneau School District staff member Megan Freas. Freas was one of 86 people to get vaccinated on Friday as Juneau Public Schools hosted onsite vaccine clinics at Thunder Mountain High School and Juneau-Douglas Yadaa.at Kalé High School. Students age 16 and older and staff members were eligible to be vaccinated at the clinic.
Stock

Banking on ‘green’ for energy independence

A good investment.

Stock
The town of Tenakee Springs is holding a fundraiser to replace a footbridge washed out in the torrential December rains of 2020. (Courtesy photo / Nicole Pegues)

Tenakee Springs fundraises to replace washed-out bridge

With the birdge cut, residents on the far side have no foot access to town.

The town of Tenakee Springs is holding a fundraiser to replace a footbridge washed out in the torrential December rains of 2020. (Courtesy photo / Nicole Pegues)
The Juneau Police Department is searching for a man and woman, pictured here in surveillance footage, wanted in connection for a robbery that occurred downtown on April 1, 2021. (Courtesy photo / JPD)

Police search for suspects in downtown robbery and beating

The victim was struck on the back of the head repeatedly, and his backpack briefly stolen.

The Juneau Police Department is searching for a man and woman, pictured here in surveillance footage, wanted in connection for a robbery that occurred downtown on April 1, 2021. (Courtesy photo / JPD)
Kelly Tshibaka addresses members of the community at Nikiski Hardware & Supply on Friday, April 9, 2021 in Nikiski, Alaska. (Ashlyn O'Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

Senate hopeful Tshibaka makes rounds on Kenai Peninsula

The former DOA head is challenging Sen. Lisa Murkowski for her Senate seat.

Kelly Tshibaka addresses members of the community at Nikiski Hardware & Supply on Friday, April 9, 2021 in Nikiski, Alaska. (Ashlyn O'Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
The Alsek River is the straight, tan waterway with a major branch that turns left into Alsek Lake. As the Grand Plateau Glacier — near top left of the photo — recedes, scientists think the Alsek River will flow that way to the sea. Currently, the Alsek River hangs a sharp right to reach Dry Bay and the Gulf of Alaska. (Courtesy Photo /Chris Larsen)

Alaska Science Forum: Big change on a big landscape

Could a roving river re-route rafters ?

The Alsek River is the straight, tan waterway with a major branch that turns left into Alsek Lake. As the Grand Plateau Glacier — near top left of the photo — recedes, scientists think the Alsek River will flow that way to the sea. Currently, the Alsek River hangs a sharp right to reach Dry Bay and the Gulf of Alaska. (Courtesy Photo /Chris Larsen)
This photo shows the National Archives in the Sand Point neighborhood of Seattle that has about a million boxes of generally unique, original source documents and public records. In an announcement made Thursday, April 8, 2021, the Biden administration has halted the sale of the federal archives building in Seattle, following months of opposition from people across the Pacific Northwest and a lawsuit by the Washington Attorney General's Office. Among the records at the center are tribal, military, land, court, tax and census documents. (Alan Berner / The Seattle Times)

Biden halts sale of National Archives center in Seattle

Tribes and members of Congress pushed for the halt.

This photo shows the National Archives in the Sand Point neighborhood of Seattle that has about a million boxes of generally unique, original source documents and public records. In an announcement made Thursday, April 8, 2021, the Biden administration has halted the sale of the federal archives building in Seattle, following months of opposition from people across the Pacific Northwest and a lawsuit by the Washington Attorney General's Office. Among the records at the center are tribal, military, land, court, tax and census documents. (Alan Berner / The Seattle Times)
A role of "I Voted" stickers sit sanitizer. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire File)

Opinion: There’s a problem election reform efforts are ignoring

Campaigns should be shorter. But they aren’t.

  • Apr 10, 2021
  • By Rich Moniak
A role of "I Voted" stickers sit sanitizer. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire File)
This photo shows Unangax̂ Gravesite at Funter Bay, the site where Aleut villagers forcibly relocated to the area during World War II are buried. A bill recently passed by the Alaska House of Representatives would make the area part of a neighboring state park. (Courtesy photo / Niko Sanguinetti, Juneau-Douglas City Museum) DO NOT REUSE THIS PHOTO WITHOUT PERMISSION FROM JUNEAU DOUGLAS CITY MUSEUM. -BEN HOHENSTATT

Bill to preserve Unangax̂ Gravesite passes House

Bill now heads to the state Senate.

This photo shows Unangax̂ Gravesite at Funter Bay, the site where Aleut villagers forcibly relocated to the area during World War II are buried. A bill recently passed by the Alaska House of Representatives would make the area part of a neighboring state park. (Courtesy photo / Niko Sanguinetti, Juneau-Douglas City Museum) DO NOT REUSE THIS PHOTO WITHOUT PERMISSION FROM JUNEAU DOUGLAS CITY MUSEUM. -BEN HOHENSTATT
State lawmakers including Juneau Democrats Sen. Jesse Kiehl and Rep. Andi Story, pose with a copy of a joint resolution urging federal action to allow cruising to return to Alaska this summer. Gov. Mike Dunleavy stands to the left and Juneau Mayor Beth Weldon is in the left background in the hangar of Wings Airways in Juneau on Friday, April 9, 2021. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

Governor says help coming for beleaguered tourism industry

Alaska is open.

State lawmakers including Juneau Democrats Sen. Jesse Kiehl and Rep. Andi Story, pose with a copy of a joint resolution urging federal action to allow cruising to return to Alaska this summer. Gov. Mike Dunleavy stands to the left and Juneau Mayor Beth Weldon is in the left background in the hangar of Wings Airways in Juneau on Friday, April 9, 2021. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
Snowfall in Juneau is expected to largely taper off this weekend, replaced by warmer temperatures, said National Weather Service meteorologists. (Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire)

More snow may be coming, but the end may be in sight

Many have begged fruitlessly to the uncaring gods for the arrival of spring in the Southeast.

Snowfall in Juneau is expected to largely taper off this weekend, replaced by warmer temperatures, said National Weather Service meteorologists. (Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire)