Washington, D.C

Fairbanksans drive National Christmas tree to Washington, D.C.

Published

1 year ago

November 9, 2024

Fairbanksans drive National Christmas tree to Washington, D.C.

The National Christmas Tree that ends up in Washington D.C. is coming from Alaska this year. Two Fairbanksans are driving a special, extra-long tractor-trailer from Seattle to D.C., after the tree was barged from Wrangell.

John Schank and Fred Austin are driving the Capitol Christmas tree from Washington State to Washington, D.C. They flew from Fairbanks to Seattle on Monday to meet the 74-foot Sitka Spruce that was barged from Wrangell.

“We came, flew down here and picked up a new Kenworth tractor and went to the barge, picked up the tree and the trailer, and now we’re showing it,” said Austin.

The Kenworth company donates a new truck every year for the Capitol tree.

Schank pulled the truck and trailer into a park in Renton, Washington Wednesday night, where there was a party for locals who want to see the tree.

“Well, there’s a lot of people, they have ladders up here, we got felt pens for it, they sign their name, you know, Merry Christmas and blah, blah, blah, where they’re from, etc.”

OK, the ladders are so folks can climb up next to the 85-foot long custom-built trailer that gets used every year to transport each Capitol Christmas Tree. There are already hundreds of signatures on the canvas banner on the truck. Fred Austin says this party is the first of 17 whistle-stop visits they will make on the trip.

Courtesy U.S. Forest Service

A visitor in Renton, Washington signs the canvas cover of the trailer holding the 74-foot Sitka Spruce headed to Washington, D.C.

“And, uh, they’re just people circling around the back of the trailer about 20 feet is plexiglass. So, you can look in and see the tree. It’s got decorations and lights on it, on that part of the tree that you can see. So, they’re going around absolutely enjoying looking at it. And there are maybe one thousand people here.”

Each year, the D.C. tree is chosen from different regions throughout the United States. This year’s Capitol Christmas tree came from the Tongass National Forest, near Wrangell. And it was folks in Wrangell who organized the making of 14,000 ornaments created by schoolkids and adults in Alaska.

The U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree in front of Wrangell’s Nolan Center during its Harvest Festival on Oct. 26, 2024. The Sitka Spruce is heading to Washington, D.C. for the holiday season.

And it was the high school kids in Wrangell who developed the watering system for the tree. Usually the Capitol tree is cut down, but this one was dug up with some of it’s roots intact. The school’s tech club created a watering system for the tree, including 20 mister nozzles that cycle water onto the root wad.

The tree also made a stop in Ketchikan on its way to the lower-48.

This is the second National Christmas Tree that’s come from Alaska. The first was in 2015, and Austin and Schank drove that one, too. They are used to the tricks required to fit an 85-foot rig into a public park.

“I’ve been driving trucks for 71 years and you get used to doing what you have to do to get everything to fit.”

Oh yeah. Austin is 89 years old. And Schank is 78. But when asked if they could drive what is often called “The People’s Tree,” they weren’t about to say no.

They are also being escorted by officers from the U.S. Forest Service.

You can follow the progress of the National tree at the website: https://www.kenworth.com/tree-tracker

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Washington, D.C

WATCH LIVE: No Kings march and rally in DC

Published

11 hours ago

March 28, 2026

Press Room

WATCH LIVE: No Kings march and rally in DC

WASHINGTON – Thousands are expected gather in Washington, D.C. for a “No Kings” march and rally.

Here’s everything you need to know:

What is the No Kings protest?

What we know:

Organized locally by area chapters of Indivisible and allied grassroots groups, the event aims to draw protesters to downtown Washington and surrounding counties to oppose policies of the Trump administration and to voice broader concerns about civil rights and democratic norms.

No Kings protest details

Timeline:

The march will kick off at 10 a.m., with participants gathering at Memorial Circle near Arlington Cemetery, with additional access from the Blue Line or nearby parking at the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City, according to the event organizers. There is no public parking in the immediate area, but participants can be dropped off at the circle.

From there, the procession will head across the Memorial Bridge into Washington, D.C., passing the Lincoln Memorial and continuing on to the Washington Monument.

At the conclusion of the march, participants can walk to a downtown rally, from 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Other ‘No Kings’ rallies in the DMV

Dig deeper:

In addition to the main rally in downtown D.C., several other demonstrations tied to “No Kings 3” are scheduled around the DMV this Saturday.

In Arlington, Virginia, activists are organizing a march across the Memorial Bridge beginning at 10 a.m., with protesters expected to continue into West Potomac Park before joining larger crowds in the District proper, for example.

There are hundreds of “No Kings” events scheduled to take place this Saturday throughout the DMV. You can click here to find a list of all of them.

How to watch No Kings march and rally in DC

What you can do:

FOX 5 DC will be covering No Kings in D.C. all day on FOX LOCAL and in the liveplayer at the top of this story.

FOX 5 DC is available to watch for free on Roku, Amazon FireTV, Apple TV, Google Android TV and Vizio with the FOX LOCAL app. Here’s how to download FOX LOCAL on your mobile phone.

Washington, D.C.News

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Washington, D.C

‘Strong smell’ shuts down flights at major DC-area airports for the second time this month

Published

23 hours ago

March 27, 2026

Press Room

‘Strong smell’ shuts down flights at major DC-area airports for the second time this month

Check out what’s clicking on FoxBusiness.com.

A reported “strong smell” at a key air traffic control center disrupted flights Friday evening at major airports across the Washington, D.C., region for the second time in two weeks.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) temporarily halted flights at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD), Baltimore/Washington International Airport (BWI), Charlottesville–Albemarle Airport (CHO) and Richmond International Airport (RIC), the agency told FOX Business in an email.

The FAA said the disruptions were due to a “strong smell” at the Potomac Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) center, which manages airspace in the region.

GROUND STOP LIFTED AT MAJOR DC-AREA AIRPORTS AFTER CHEMICAL ODOR DISRUPTS AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL

An FAA air traffic control tower at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Va. (Samuel Corum/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)

It was not immediately clear what caused the smell.

Ground stops at Dulles, Reagan National and BWI remained in effect until around 8 p.m. ET before being lifted, according to the FAA’s website.

NEWARK AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS LOST RADAR, RADIO COMMUNICATIONS WITH PLANES FOR OVER A MINUTE, SPARKING CHAOS

The FAA said the disruption was due to a “strong smell” at the Potomac Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) center. (Flightradar24)

As of 8:30 p.m., Reagan National was experiencing ground delays, while BWI continued to see departure delays.

Earlier this month, a ground stop was similarly issued at several airports in the Washington, D.C., region after a chemical odor was detected at the TRACON center.

FATAL LAGUARDIA COLLISION RENEWS FOCUS ON RUNWAY INCURSION RISKS ACROSS US

Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy speaks at a news conference at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. (Heather Diehl/Getty Images / Getty Images)

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The temporary ground stop March 13 similarly affected DCA, IAD, BWI and RIC, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said at the time.

Duffy said the smell came from an overheated circuit board, which has since been replaced.

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Washington, D.C

50 years of DC Metro: A look back in photos

Published

1 day ago

March 27, 2026

Press Room

50 years of DC Metro: A look back in photos

One family, four generations with DC Metro

As Metro celebrates 50 years of service, one D.C. family is marking the milestone with a legacy of their own — four generations who have all worked on the system, helping keep the region moving for decades.

WASHINGTON – D.C. residents got on their first Metro train 50 years ago on March 27, 1976. Here’s a look back at the beginning.

Connecticut Avenue; NW; looking south. evening traffic-jams are aggravated by metro subway construction in Washington D.C. ca. 1973 (Photo by: HUM Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

View of the Metro Center subway station (at 13th and G Streets NW) during its construction, Washington DC, November 16, 1973. (Photo by Warren K Leffler/PhotoQuest/Getty Images)

Standing in the cavernous tunnel, planners wearing hard hats discuss the construction progress of the Metro Center subway station at the intersection of 13th and G Streets in Washington, DC, November 16, 1973. (Photo by Leffler/Library of Congress/In

WASHINGTON, DC – NOVEMBER 07: FILE, Metro construction miners and blasters on a jumbo drill outside the hole they are working on at Rock Creek Parkway and Cathedral Ave NW in Washington, DC on November 7, 1973. (Photo by James K.W Atherton/The Washin

WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 4: FILE, View of the Post Office at North Capital and Mass Avenue NE, and 1st NE where subway tunnels were being constructed in Washington, DC on March 4, 1974. (Photo by Joe Heiberger/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

WASHINGTON, DC – AUGUST 29: FILE, Workers rig a pipe at the entrance to the Rosslyn Metro Station in Washington DC on August 29, 1974 (Photo by Larry Morris/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 27: FILE, The crowd at Rhode Island Station on opening day of the Washington Metro on March 27, 1976. (Photo by James A. Parcell/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 28: FILE, Reverend Leslie E. Smith of the Episcopal Church, right, and George Docherty of New York Avenue Presbyterian church hold a joint service at the new Metro Center station in Washington, DC on March 28, 1976. (Photo by D

WASHINGTON, DC – JULY 1: FILE, An aerial view of metro construction where it crosses the Washington Channel. The Potomac River, the Pentagon and Northern Virginia can be seen in the distance. (Photo by Ken Feil/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

WASHINGTON, DC – JANUARY 27: FILE, A packed train of commuters on the Silver Spring metro on the Red Line on January 27, 1987. (Photo by Dudley M. Brooks/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

WASHINGTON, DC – JULY 4: FILE, Thousands of people press their way into the Smithsonian Subway station after the Independence Day fireworks in Washington, DC on July 4, 1979. (Photo by Lucian Perkins/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit AuthorityNewsWashington, D.C.

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