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Alaska institutions and businesses reckon with impacts of wide-ranging cloud software glitch

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Alaska institutions and businesses reckon with impacts of wide-ranging cloud software glitch



A 911 dispatch center in Petersburg. (Photo: KFSK)

911 services across Alaska are back up and running after a software update from the popular cloud security provider CrowdStrike caused chaos and crashed computer systems around the world late Thursday night.

Alaska State Troopers reported late Thursday night that the outage had disrupted operations at “many” emergency and non-emergency call centers around the state. State troopers said 911 services across the state were back to normal as of about 6:45 a.m.

Across the country, the faulty software update disrupted health care providers, airlines and banks, among others.

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The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities said the issue resulted in cancellations of seven Delta and United flights at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport. State officials said Alaska Airlines flights were not disrupted by the outage.

Flight tracking website FlightAware reported 42 delays at Ted Stevens as of 1:30 p.m. Friday.

“Multiple airlines systems continue to be affected late into the morning, there is no projected timeline for when they will be operational again,” DOT&PF said in a statement.

State officials said the issue had delayed three flights at Fairbanks International Airport.

The operator of Alaska’s largest hospital, Providence Health and Services, said in a statement posted to its website that its IT teams worked overnight to respond to the issue and restore functionality to a key electronic health records system. But the nonprofit Catholic hospital provider said other systems, including clinical applications and workstations, continued to feel the impact of the outage as of noon Alaska time Friday.

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A spokesperson said Alaska Native Medical Center in Anchorage was experiencing “operational challenges” as a result of the software glitch but said care was continuing.

“While we have organized an incident command to urgently restore all systems at the Alaska Native Medical Center and campus-wide, our emergency services and specialty clinics remain open,” Shea Siegert of the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium said in an emailed statement. “Patients needing healthcare can absolutely come to the hospital or clinic for care. We are prioritizing solutions in clinical areas, using downtime procedures as needed, and continue to provide the highest level of patient care possible.”

Erin Hardin, a spokesperson for Bartlett Regional Hospital in Juneau, said the outage’s impact on their operations was limited, and that patients should not expect disruptions.

“Our daily operations are functioning normally,” she said. “We are learning of a few, I think, third party vendors that we do use that have been impacted, and so we’re learning about what some of those secondary impacts are. … That work is still underway, but our major operations are not affected.”

The outage also affected state courts, said Alaska Court System spokesperson Rebecca Koford, though the impacts were relatively minor.

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“In some locations, things might have been a little slow to get started this morning, but no hearings were actually disrupted,” she said. “Everything was able to continue, but it might have required a little bit of extra patience today.”

State appeals court records were inaccessible online Friday morning but appeared to be functioning normally by midday. Koford said IT teams worked overnight to prevent wider impacts to court operations.

First National Bank Alaska said by email that its customers were not affected by the issue.

“Our internal Information Technology and Security teams, who monitor First National’s network 24/7, took immediate action to ensure all bank systems remained secure and operational, ensuring all customers experienced uninterrupted access to in-person and digital banking services,” said Senior Vice President Denise Brown Robinson.

CrowdStrike offered a workaround for the issue in a blog post on its website.

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This is a developing story and may be updated.


Eric Stone covers state government, tracking the Alaska Legislature, state policy and its impact on all Alaskans. Reach him at estone@alaskapublic.org.





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Crews continue making progress on Delta Fires

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Crews continue making progress on Delta Fires


A White Mountain Crewmember feels for any remaining heat along the Rapeseed Fire (#275) outside of Delta Junction on June 24 2026. Photo/ Sam Porter

#222 Granite Fire– The Clackamas Crew joined the Southwest Type 1 Crew and TCC Squad A on the Granite Fire today. The fire is now 85% contained. 
A thermal detection drone was flown over the fire to identify any remaining heat. A Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) is in place and will continue tomorrow, meaning aircraft and drones that are not supporting firefighting operations are prohibited from flying over or near the incident. 
Crews are also checking windrows for remaining heat. Windrows are rows of trees left standing to reduce wind erosion on farmland. Firefighters will pile and burn dead or downed trees, as well as hazard trees with burned roots. 

#257 Barley 2 Fire– All personnel have been demobilized from the Barley 2 Fire after it was declared contained and controlled. The fire will remain in monitor status. This will be the last update for this fire unless significant changes occur.

#268 Moosehead Fire– A boat is transporting TCC Squad C to the Moosehead Fire, where they are gridding the interior and checking for any remaining heat. 

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The White Mountain T2IA crew stand in an arc, gridding the fire, looking for any smoke or heat. Photo/ Sam Porter

#275 Rapeseed Fire- The Rapeseed Fire is 80% contained. The White Mountain Type 2 Initial Attack Crew is constructing sawline and cold trailing the fire’s edge to locate and extinguish any remaining heat. 
A Nodwell continues to provide an effective way to transport personnel, equipment, supplies, and water through the remote, sensitive terrain while supporting suppression efforts. 
 
#223 Pogo and #226 Shaw Fires continue to be in monitor status. 

Map of Delta Area Fires. Click to download or enlarge
‹ More Firefighters Heading to Ambler for Jade Fire

Categories: Active Wildland Fire, Alaska DNR – Division of Forestry & Fire Protection (DFFP)

Tags: #FireYear2026 #2026AKFIRESEASON, 2026 Alaska Fire Season, Delta, Granite Fire, Moosehead Fire, Pogo Fire, Rapeseed Fire, Shaw Fire

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Characteristics of Leadership: Recklessness – Alaska Business Magazine

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Characteristics of Leadership: Recklessness – Alaska Business Magazine


Picture it: an 800-mile engineering marvel traversing Alaska’s rugged wilderness. An immense zinc mine powering Northwest Alaska’s economy. World-class sustainable harvests feeding global markets with seafood.

The Trans Alaska Pipeline System, Red Dog mine, and the Alaska fishing industry: These massive ventures represent high-stakes investments in infrastructure and resources that have transformed Alaska into a powerhouse of global energy, minerals, and food. Today, we call these ventures inspired, but that label masks a fundamental nuance and common misconception: there is a distinction between the risky and the reckless.

That line between bold visionary and reckless gambler is usually written in ink only after the dust settles and the checks clear. Winners are often labeled as geniuses while thousands of leaders who made similar bets but went bust are ignored. When you see any winner in the marketplace, their strategy can look like a guaranteed blueprint for success. This is survivorship bias in action, obsessing over the front-runners while ignoring the graveyard of those who made the same choices. Recklessness is a classic leadership trap, in part, because it is very easy to mistake good luck for repeatable strategy. Our brains are wired to find patterns in chaos, even when they don’t exist, and when a gamble pays off, it is easy to invent a story to explain why it worked. This explains, in part, why high-risk behavior is often rebranded as “visionary” in the business world.

Understanding the mechanics of recklessness can help a leader spot the difference between a smart move and a predictable bad one. It is the contrast between a high-wire artist using a safety net and having practiced the route, versus one who just hopes they don’t fall. The first one is making calculated moves, and the second is wishing for the best.

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Smokejumpers, aircraft responding to new fire near Ambler

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Smokejumpers, aircraft responding to new fire near Ambler


Smoke from the Jade Fire (#285) to west of Ambler as shown on this FAA Weather Camera at 5 p.m. on June 23, 2026.

9:50 p.m. Update, June 23, 2026: Another load of 12 smokejumpers is en route to join the 11 already working on the Jade Fire (#285), which is burning about 3 miles west of Ambler and west of the Kopshesut Fire. Two single‑engine water scoopers — highly effective in calming the Kopshesut Fire in its early days — along with personnel aboard an air attack platform, are working the incident. The air attack platform is used to coordinate airspace and relay information between aircraft and firefighters on the ground.

The larger multi‑engine water scoopers were requested but were unable to respond due to weather at Ladd Airfield on Fort Wainwright.

At about 8:42 p.m., the fire was reported at 10 acres and was torching and active on all sides. It was burning toward the Kopshesut Fire, which stands between it and Ambler

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Use this link for an interactive map to zoom in and out for a closer look at the location of the fire: https://arcg.is/1XLmHm8

8:45 p.m., June 23, 2026: U.S. Wildland Fire Service contracted aircraft and smokejumpers are en route to Ambler after receiving reports of a new fire near the Kobuk River community.

Numberous reports from locals reporting the fire is west of the Kopeshusut Fire (#137) that escaped from the landfill June 4 and threatened the community before being contained last week.

More information will be released when it’s available.

Contact U.S. Wildland Fire Service Public Affairs Specialist Beth Ipsen at elizabeth_ipsen@ios.doi.gov or (907)388-2159 for more information.

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A new fire broke out 3 miles west of Ambler Tuesday night. The Jade Fire is also west of the Kopshesut Fire that escaped the Ambler landfill on June 4 and was contained last week. Click on the map for a PDF version.
Here’s a closer look at the Jade Fire (#285) burning west of the Kopshesut Fire and about 3 miles west of Ambler. Use this link for an interactive map to zoom in and out for a closer look at the location of the fire.

-USWFS-

U.S. Wildland Fire Service, P.O. Box 35005 1541 Gaffney Road, Fort Wainwright, AK 99703

Need public domain imagery to complement news coverage of the USWFS in Alaska? Visit our Flickr channel! 
Learn more online, and on Facebook.

‹ Delta Area fires receive rain as suppression efforts continue
Firefighters reach 50% containment on Starry Fire ›

Categories: Active Wildland Fire, AK Fire Info, US Wildland Fire Service

Tags: 2026 Alaska Fire Season

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