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Thunder Mountain High School players and spectators celebrate as the Falcons score the winning point to prevail in a five-set series over Ketchikan High School on Saturday night. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

A drama-filled weekend as Juneau’s volleyball teams continue contrasting seasons

TMHS prevails in toughest game yet to stay undefeated; JDHS puts up fight seeking first win.

Thunder Mountain High School players and spectators celebrate as the Falcons score the winning point to prevail in a five-set series over Ketchikan High School on Saturday night. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
A crowd gathers on the Photo Point Trail footbridge near Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center to witness flooded Mendenhall Lake during the first jökulhlaup on July 20, 2011. Sloshing debris beside the bridge floats atop the flooding lake. The lake reached 10.92 feet that year. (Photo by Laurie Craig)

Local jökulhlaups: when the ice melts

Suicide Basin’s history reveals Juneau’s unique position to study impacts of glacier lake outbursts.

A crowd gathers on the Photo Point Trail footbridge near Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center to witness flooded Mendenhall Lake during the first jökulhlaup on July 20, 2011. Sloshing debris beside the bridge floats atop the flooding lake. The lake reached 10.92 feet that year. (Photo by Laurie Craig)
Bryan Wilson and Courtney Olivia engage in the ancient game of Shōbu on Saturday during the annual Platypus-Con Board and Card Game Extravaganza at Centennial Hall. The event continues through Sunday. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

Giant Platypus invades Centennial Hall

Hundreds of residents engage with stones, quilts and Nerf weapons at annual gaming convention.

Bryan Wilson and Courtney Olivia engage in the ancient game of Shōbu on Saturday during the annual Platypus-Con Board and Card Game Extravaganza at Centennial Hall. The event continues through Sunday. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
A woman wearing a sweatshirt with a giant footprint enters the Juneau Bigfoot Town Hall at Elizabeth Peratrovich Hall on Friday. (Meredith Jordan / Juneau Empire)

Big turnout for Bigfoot Town Hall

Cruise ship passengers and Juneauites listen to Sasquatch stories and talks

A woman wearing a sweatshirt with a giant footprint enters the Juneau Bigfoot Town Hall at Elizabeth Peratrovich Hall on Friday. (Meredith Jordan / Juneau Empire)
Juneau Huskies players and coaches storm the field in celebration after Hayden Aube runs for a touchdown in double overtime to win 55-49 at Washington’s Auburn State on Friday night. It was the first win of the season for Juneau, which returns home after a three-game road trip for another night game next Friday. (Screenshot from Juneau Huskies Football video)

Friday night northern lights: Huskies win 55-49 shootout classic in Washington in 2OT

Juneau gets first win as replacement QB Hayden Aube overcomes goal-line fumbles, scores winning TD.

Juneau Huskies players and coaches storm the field in celebration after Hayden Aube runs for a touchdown in double overtime to win 55-49 at Washington’s Auburn State on Friday night. It was the first win of the season for Juneau, which returns home after a three-game road trip for another night game next Friday. (Screenshot from Juneau Huskies Football video)
Fallen trees covered with moss are seen in the Shorty Creek area of the Tongass National Forest on Aug. 16. (Photo courtesy of the U.S. Forest Service)

State challenges Biden’s revival of Roadless Rule in federal court

Complaint filed Friday continues more than two decades of battles over Tongass policy.

Fallen trees covered with moss are seen in the Shorty Creek area of the Tongass National Forest on Aug. 16. (Photo courtesy of the U.S. Forest Service)
Tibetan Buddhist Lama Khentrul Lodrö Thayé Rinpoche on a trip to the Mendenhall Glacier in 2018, his last visit to Juneau. He is returning for a talk on Sept. 14 at Juneau Arts and Humanities Council. (Photo courtesy Karin Dvorak)
Tibetan Buddhist Lama Khentrul Lodrö Thayé Rinpoche on a trip to the Mendenhall Glacier in 2018, his last visit to Juneau. He is returning for a talk on Sept. 14 at Juneau Arts and Humanities Council. (Photo courtesy Karin Dvorak)
A Wilson warbler on a garden fern at about 16-Mile Glacier Highway on Aug. 17. (Courtesy Photo / Kenneth Gill, gillfoto)

Wild Shots

To showcase our readers’ work to the widest possible audience, Wild Shots have been moved in front of the Juneau Empire’s paywall. Don’t have a… Continue reading

A Wilson warbler on a garden fern at about 16-Mile Glacier Highway on Aug. 17. (Courtesy Photo / Kenneth Gill, gillfoto)
This symbol is inside of the Alaska Department of Corrections office on Sept. 7, 2022, in Douglas, Alaska. (Photo by Lisa Phu/Alaska Beacon)

Alaska Department of Corrections seeks to lower hiring age from 21 to 18 years old

Applicant pool has dropped 30% in the last year for correctional officers

This symbol is inside of the Alaska Department of Corrections office on Sept. 7, 2022, in Douglas, Alaska. (Photo by Lisa Phu/Alaska Beacon)
The entrance to the Anchorage Correctional Complex is seen on Aug. 29, 2022. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Anchorage inmate dies after two days in custody in 7th Alaska inmate death this year

An Anchorage inmate died after two days in custody, the Alaska Department of Corrections reported Thursday. It is the seventh inmate death the department has… Continue reading

The entrance to the Anchorage Correctional Complex is seen on Aug. 29, 2022. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
Candidate Joe Banana: Juneau needs “strong mayor.” (Mark Kelley / Juneau Empire Archives)
Candidate Joe Banana: Juneau needs “strong mayor.” (Mark Kelley / Juneau Empire Archives)
Juneau Board of Education candidate David Noon, center, answers a question during an election forum hosted by the Greater Juneau Chamber of Commerce on Thursday afternoon. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

Juneau Assembly and school board candidates tackle tough topics at chamber forum

Housing, tourism and a new City Hall; book bans, absenteeism and consolidation.

Juneau Board of Education candidate David Noon, center, answers a question during an election forum hosted by the Greater Juneau Chamber of Commerce on Thursday afternoon. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)
Cars pass down Egan Drive near the Fred Meyer intersection Thursday morning. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

Assembly passes resolution urging Fred Meyer intersection safety improvements

Members unanimously vote to ask state to provide funding for traffic light, other upgrades.

Cars pass down Egan Drive near the Fred Meyer intersection Thursday morning. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)
The state’s official COVID-19 dashboard shows infection rates for various areas during the past week. (Alaska Department of Health)

Small uptick in respiratory illnesses, including COVID-19, in Juneau

Health officials remind people to be proactive with flu season ahead

The state’s official COVID-19 dashboard shows infection rates for various areas during the past week. (Alaska Department of Health)
Three students hold hands as they walk up the stairs to the entrance of Sayéik: Gastineau Community School for the first day of the 2023-2024 school year in August. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)

With fewer students enrolled, Juneau School District officials anticipate $500K loss in funding

Preliminary district enrollment count comes in below projections, likely to create funding gap.

Three students hold hands as they walk up the stairs to the entrance of Sayéik: Gastineau Community School for the first day of the 2023-2024 school year in August. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)
Rio Alberto sings during a rehearsal Tuesday evening of “Hedwig and The Angry Inch” which debuts at Perseverance Theatre on Sept. 15. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)
Rio Alberto sings during a rehearsal Tuesday evening of “Hedwig and The Angry Inch” which debuts at Perseverance Theatre on Sept. 15. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)
Thunder Mountain High School receives a five-year banner marking its successful participation in NOAA’s Ocean Guardian School Program on Wednesday, the first school in the state to reach the milestone. Teacher Kristen Wells, far left, and students Lucy Bennett and Steffanie Reynoso were presented with the banner by Kim Raum-Suryan, who coordinates the Ocean Guardian School Program in Alaska, Anne Marie Eich, assistant regional administrator of NOAA’s Protected Resources Division, and Michelle Trifari, an Alaska Sea Grant Fellow. (Meredith Jordan/ Juneau Empire)

Thunder Mountain High School gets NOAA Ocean Guardian 5-year banner

First school in the state to achieve conservation group milestone.

Thunder Mountain High School receives a five-year banner marking its successful participation in NOAA’s Ocean Guardian School Program on Wednesday, the first school in the state to reach the milestone. Teacher Kristen Wells, far left, and students Lucy Bennett and Steffanie Reynoso were presented with the banner by Kim Raum-Suryan, who coordinates the Ocean Guardian School Program in Alaska, Anne Marie Eich, assistant regional administrator of NOAA’s Protected Resources Division, and Michelle Trifari, an Alaska Sea Grant Fellow. (Meredith Jordan/ Juneau Empire)
An aerial shows the footprint of the test well drilled in the mid-1980s on land owned by the Kaktovik Native village corporation within the 1002 area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The well is 14 miles east of Kaktovik and the melting the Beaufort Sea is at the top of the picture. One of the bidders in an oil and gas lease sale for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge last year has canceled the lease it bought, the U.S. Interior Department said. (Michael Penn / Juneau Empire File)

Interior cancels remaining leases in Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

The U.S. Interior Department on Wednesday canceled seven oil and gas leases in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge that were part of a sale held… Continue reading

An aerial shows the footprint of the test well drilled in the mid-1980s on land owned by the Kaktovik Native village corporation within the 1002 area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The well is 14 miles east of Kaktovik and the melting the Beaufort Sea is at the top of the picture. One of the bidders in an oil and gas lease sale for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge last year has canceled the lease it bought, the U.S. Interior Department said. (Michael Penn / Juneau Empire File)
In this photo provided by Elizabeth Wilkins is Leo the cat on Aug. 31. Elizabeth Wilkins and her partner Tom Schwartz were reunited with Leo 26 days after their home collapsed Aug. 5 into the swollen Mendenhall River. (Elizabeth Wilkins via AP)

Couple reunited with cat 26 days after home collapsed into flooded Mendenhall River

A pair of Alaska teachers needed good news after they lost nearly all their possessions when their house collapsed into a river swollen by a… Continue reading

In this photo provided by Elizabeth Wilkins is Leo the cat on Aug. 31. Elizabeth Wilkins and her partner Tom Schwartz were reunited with Leo 26 days after their home collapsed Aug. 5 into the swollen Mendenhall River. (Elizabeth Wilkins via AP)
The front of the Alaska State Capitol in Juneau is seen on Wednesday, April 12, 2023. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)

Two more Alaska ballot measures pass legal muster, but another is disqualified

Alaska Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom on Friday approved two ballot measures and disqualified a third from advancing into the signature-gathering phase. The approved measures would… Continue reading

The front of the Alaska State Capitol in Juneau is seen on Wednesday, April 12, 2023. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)