Connect with us

Alaska

Family mourns the loss of two loved ones to drowning this summer

Published

on

Family mourns the loss of two loved ones to drowning this summer


FAIRBANKS, Alaska (KTUU) – The Fairbanks community is mourning its second death seen this summer, linked to drowning in the Chena River, according to Fairbanks Police Department. The most recent death, hapened on July 19th, after FPD reported witnesses saw a man, later identified as 42-year-old, Elia Ansaknok, jumping into the river.

“We would like to urge all residents to use caution and safe practices, such as using lifejackets, when recreating on or swimming in the Chena River,” FPD shared on its Facebook page.

Ansaknok’s body was later discovered on Friday, after a week of search efforts. His niece, Lauren Ansaknok, sharing with Alaska’s News Source on Saturday, that her uncle was the nicest and funniest person she had ever met.

“We didn’t expect this loss, it was really sudden,” said Lauren. “The unknown and the uncertainty, if we were ever going to find him and when we were going to find him, that took a toll.”

Advertisement

During the past week, Lauren said her family has received an outpouring of love and support from the Fairbanks community including strangers, she said, donating their time and boats in efforts to find her uncle. Every day, Lauren said, there was a search party of about 30 people looking for Ansaknok.

“They’ve truly just been there for our family and it’s been something I’ve never experienced before,” said Lauren.

Especially during a time when her family is also grieving the loss of her uncle, Andrew, who she said died also from drowning a month ago in the Yukon River.

“So many people had come by just to support and bringing food and donations and as soon as they found out who it was and knowing that we had that loss previously, a month ago they were even more so present,” said Lauren.

Alaska is one of the leading states in the nation, when it comes to fatalities linked to drowning. Those rates particularly higher in males and people living in rural areas, according to a report State of Alaska Epidemiology. “I don’t ever want another family to go through what we’re going through,” said Lauren.

Advertisement

That’s exactly what swim coach and co-founder of the Aquatic Foundation of Alaska, Grant Gamblin, is aiming to make happen.

“Our 10 year goal is to have the drowning rates [lower] in Alaska,” said Gamblin.

AFA is aiming towards improving water safety and education throughout the state, especially focusing on rural parts of the state.

“Learning at a young age is proven to decrease so many so many unfortunate fatalities that have come through,” said Gamblin.

Gamblin said he also encourages that adults learn how to swim as well. A critical key skill, he said, that he can help them survive.

Advertisement

Lauren also wants Alaskans to remember how powerful bodies of water can be and how proper water safety precautions need to be taken.

“We want everyone to accept the power that is the Chena River and any other body of water,” she said. “People need their life preservers. Please don’t jump off a bridge to go swimming on a hot day. I know that’s a local activity on some of the bridges here. It’s just so unsafe.”

Between 2016 and 2021, Alaska had 342 fatal drownings. Thirty-three percent of victims were found to be using drugs or alcohol prior and another 20% had fallen off of a vessel.



Source link

Advertisement

Alaska

FIRST ALERT: Heavy snow incoming to Southcentral, Southeast, and Southwest Alaska

Published

on

FIRST ALERT: Heavy snow incoming to Southcentral, Southeast, and Southwest Alaska


ANCHORAGE, AK (Alaska’s News Source) – A large winter storm is not only bringing heavy snowfall, but warmer temperatures are approaching! The most impacted areas will include Southcentral, Southeast, and Southwest Alaska, with close to a foot of snow accumulation likely through Tuesday afternoon.

Anchorage will receive a trace of snow overnight and into the early morning hours with about 1 to 3 inches of snow by early Monday afternoon. Close to 5 inches of snow will fall across the Kenai Peninsula and Copper River Basin by Monday afternoon before Tuesday morning brings closer to a foot of snow accumulation across the region. Anchorage and Mat-Su snow totals by Tuesday morning will likely reach 8 to 10 inches.

www.alaskasnewssource.com/weather/alerts/

Juneau will most likely get the heaviest rounds of snow from this storm system with close to a foot of snow likely to accumulate by Monday afternoon with even more snow Tuesday morning. Across Southeast, snow total will vary but Sitka and Ketchikan will receive near 3 to 7 inches. Brace for a few days of heavy snowfall with wind gusts up to 30 miles per hour. Rapid snow accumulation will add hazard to roads and rooftops so be vigilant and weather aware.

Advertisement

Download the free Alaska’s News Source Weather App.

This storm is already making landfall from the Kuskokwim Delta to Bristol Bay. Expect 8 to 16 inches of snow by Monday night as the heaviest rounds will pass over late Monday morning. Wind gusts up to 40 miles per hour will add blizzard-like conditions with reduced visibility. The Aleutian Chain is bracing for high winds as the gusts up to 70 miles per hour are likely tomorrow. Light rain will pass through as a result of residual moisture of the tail-end of this storm.

The Interior will remain mostly dry tomorrow with mostly cloudy skies stretching over the Brooks Range and into the North Slope. Overnight lows are still quite chilly, sitting near 50 and 60 below zero. Coldest temperatures of the season were record Sunday morning at -50 degrees in Fairbanks, being the coldest temperature since February 2024 which was also -50 degrees. Light snow is possible Tuesday, but otherwise, very calm and quiet weather remains across central and northern Alaska.

Send us your weather photos and videos here!

24/7 Alaska Weather: Get access to live radar, satellite, weather cameras, current conditions, and the latest weather forecast here. Also available through the Alaska’s News Source streaming app available on Apple TV, Roku, and Amazon Fire TV.

Advertisement



Source link

Continue Reading

Alaska

Alaska Sees Coldest December In Years | Weather.com

Published

on

Alaska Sees Coldest December In Years | Weather.com


undefined

Play

2 Feet Of Snow Traps Drivers In Michigan

Do you think that Alaska is cold during winter? Of course it is! However, the type of cold the state is experiencing right now if unprecedented. How about having consecutive days of temperatures colder than 40 degrees below zero!

This is true for much of the Alaskan interior, particularly near Fairbanks and in between the Alaska and Brooks mountain ranges.

Over the last four days in Fairbanks, temperatures have struggled to reach 40 degrees below zero, with organizers in Fairbanks even postponing their annual New Year’s Eve fireworks show due to the extreme cold.

The temperature in the final few minutes of 2025 in Fairbanks was 43 degrees below zero.

In other words, conditions are unbearably and dangerously cold, even by local standards in Central Alaska.

Advertisement

In Chicken, Alaska, located near the Canadian Border, temperatures dropped as low as 62 degrees below zero! Numerous other locations in the eastern Alaskan Interior have seen temperatures between 50 and 60 degrees below zero.

On top of bringing dangerously cold minimum temperatures, this most recent cold snap has also been more prolonged than usual.

Temperatures in much of Alaska have been largely colder than usual since roughly December 5th, 2025

Some regions in eastern Alaska and the neighboring Yukon Territory in Canada have seen combined December temperatures up to 30 degrees below the climatological average.

For reference, the average December temperature in Fairbanks from 1904 to 2025 is 22 degrees below zero with much of central Alaska having similarly cold December temperatures on average. The city has seen a temperature departure of 18.5 degrees below average for December 2025, ranking as the 8th coldest December on record.

Advertisement

This means that much of east-central Alaska has been stuck between 40 and 50 degrees below for nearly an entire month!

While many factors affect the severity of winters in Alaska, one notable statistic is the unusually high snowfall in portions of Alaska this past December. Fairbanks saw more than double its usual snowfall for the month of December.

Juneau, Alaska’s capital, located in far-southeast Alaska, has seen nearly its entire annual snowfall in December alone, at over 80 inches.

Snowfall promotes cold temperatures by reflecting light from the sun back to space. In Alaska, there is already very little sunlight during the winter due to its positioning on and near the Arctic Circle.

What little sunlight snow-covered portions of Alaska have seen has been quickly reflected back to space by the unusually heavy snowpack.

Advertisement

In Central Alaska, located between the Alaska and Brooks ranges, the heavy snowpack, lack of sunlight, and lack of transport of air from warmer locations have led to the development of an arctic high pressure system, leading to stable conditions and light winds. These conditions cause the land to rapidly lose heat, becoming even colder. With this arctic high pressure is in place, central Alaska has remained cold. However, a slight breakdown in the strength of the high will allow temperatures to warm somewhat (see forecast for next 3 days below).

Fortunately, this pattern will break down as we approach mid-January. A more active storm track from the Pacific is poised to bring wetter and warmer conditions to portions of Alaska, especially towards the middle to second half of the month. While this wetter pattern means snow for most, temperatures will improve, being far more bearable than the current temperatures in the 40 to 50 degree below zero range.

Hayden Marshall is a meteorologist intern and First-Year-Master’s Student at the Georgia Institute of Technology. He has been following weather content over the past three years as a Storm Spotter and weather enthusiast. He can be found on Instagram and Linkedin.





Source link

Continue Reading

Alaska

Alaska’s delegation responds to situation in Venezuela

Published

on

Alaska’s delegation responds to situation in Venezuela


ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – Officials say Venezuela’s president, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife are in New York Saturday night after they were captured in a U.S. military operation that came amid strikes in the country’s capital.

Alaska’s delegation has responded to the situation.

Senator Dan Sullivan commented on the situation saying, “In the aftermath of last night’s remarkable operation, America and the world are safer.”

He continued, saying in-part, “Maduro was an illegitimate, indicted dictator who has been leading a vicious, violent narco-terrorist enterprise in our Hemisphere that was responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of Americans. He will now face American justice. The interim Venezuelan government must now decide that it is in their country’s and people’s interest to cooperate with the United States and reject Maduro’s legacy of violence and narco-terrorism.”

Advertisement

Senator Lisa Murkowski said the U.S. does not recognize Maduro as the legitimate leader of Venezuela.

She said in-part, “While I am hopeful that this morning’s actions have made the world a safer place, the manner in which the United States conducts military operations, as well as the authority under which these operations take place, is important. When the Senate returns to Washington next week, Congress has been informed that we will receive additional briefings from the administration on the scope, objectives, and legal basis for these operations.”

Representative Nick Begich posted his statement on Facebook. He called the situation a “lawful arrest” and said it was “a powerful and flawless execution of American power and capability.”

Begich continued, saying in-part, “Stability and accountability in the Western Hemisphere are core U.S. national interests. For far too long, criminal networks operating in our own hemisphere have exploited weak governance and corruption. The result has been poisoned streets, overwhelmed borders, and countless American lives lost to fentanyl and other illicit drugs.”

See a spelling or grammar error? Report it to web@ktuu.com

Advertisement



Source link

Continue Reading
Advertisement

Trending