Alaska
Avalanche closes Alaska Panhandle highway, the latest debris slide after storms deliver historic rain and snow
City Manager for Juneau, Alaska, Katie Koester, joins FOX Weather to talk about how locals are handling the recent flood and avalanche threat and how emergency crews are prepared to handle impending situations.
HAINES, Alaska – An avalanche closed part of a highway in the borough of Haines, a small town about 90 miles north of Juneau in Alaska’s panhandle on Tuesday night — the latest debris slide in the region after days of heavy rain triggered avalanches in Juneau last week.
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Barricades have been placed at Mile 10 of the Haines Highway and crews will begin to assess the damage during the daytime on Wednesday, Alaska Department of Transportation officials said.
(Alaska Department of Transportation/Facebook / FOX Weather)
Earlier Tuesday, the department released a few photos of the highway’s condition and issued a travel advisory before the avalanche and reported that rain-on-ice conditions were making road conditions very difficult.
RECORD SNOW BURIES JUNEAU SCHOOL AND PROMPTS FIVE-DAY CLEANUP
Drivers were urged to stay off the road.
Relentless rain from an atmospheric river has pounded the southeastern part of the state, which has begun to melt a historic amount of snow that fell across the region over the holidays, triggering days of avalanche warnings.
More than 7 feet of snow has fallen across the Alaska panhandle, with the bulk coming after Christmas Eve.
Evacuations were issued in Juneau last week after several large avalanches were reported on the Thane and Mount Juneau avalanche paths Friday.
Governor Mike Dunleavy issued a disaster declaration on Saturday for both the ongoing storms and the record-shattering snow.
Another day of heavy rain is expected, but the precipitation will finally begin to decrease later Wednesday.
Check back for more details on this developing story.
Alaska
Polar bear undergoes root canal at Alaska Zoo
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (InvestigateTV) — Staff at the Alaska Zoo performed a root canal on one of its polar bears after the bear broke a canine tooth.
Kova, 4, shares an enclosure with another polar bear named Cranbeary. The two have toys, treats and a large pool where Kova likes to take her morning swim.
Curator Sam Lavin noticed something was wrong when Kova’s behavior changed.
“Kova is a very interactive and busy bear and she just seemed kind of off. She was pawing at her mouth a little bit,” Lavin said.
Lavin suspected a tooth issue and asked Kova to open her mouth for a closer look.
“We could see that she had broken one of her canines and there’s any number of ways she could have done that,” Lavin said.
An X-ray confirmed the diagnosis. Zoo staff consulted with a veterinary specialist outside Alaska, sent the X-rays and received advice on how to proceed.
“We went with a local doctor to do the work,” Lavin said.
An endodontist who normally operates on humans was part of the large team that performed the root canal on the fully sedated 450-pound bear.
“Everybody knew ahead of time what their role was and what to do and where to be and it was so well planned out and everybody worked so well together,” Lavin said.
The procedure went smoothly.
“She feels so much better,” Lavin said.
The zoo said Kova quickly recovered and is back with her playmate Cranbeary.
Read more here.
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Alaska
Alaska disability advocates praise progress and push for more at state Capitol
Alaska
West Valley’s Jayden Miranda named Gatorade Alaska Boys Basketball Player of the Year
Junior Jayden Miranda on Friday became the latest player from West Valley High School to be named Gatorade Alaska Boys Basketball Player of the Year.
“It feels good and it was definitely one of the goals that I had to check off my checklist,” he said. “I woke up, and I didn’t know. My coach told me, and it was just excitement in my heart. My heart was beating and I was just smiling.”
Miranda led the Wolfpack boys basketball team to a Mid Alaska Conference championship and the No. 1 seed at the 2026 ASAA 4A state tournament.
The 5-foot-11 guard also helped lead West Valley to a 22-4 record, and through 23 games, he averaged 14.7 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.5 assists as well as shooting 51.8% from the floor and 39.7% from the perimeter.
“Miranda is a great kid on and off the court — gets good grades and never gets in trouble,” North Pole head coach Travis Church said in a statement. “Looking around 4A, I don’t see anyone who would measure up. He’s the best player on the best team in the state. It’s hard for me to imagine going with anyone else.”
Miranda is the second player from the program to receive the award. The first was two-time recipient Stewart Erhart, who was honored in back-to-back years from 2022-23.
The award acknowledges a student-athlete’s athletic achievement, and also recognizes outstanding academic excellence and exceptional character displayed on and off the court.
Miranda maintained a 3.36 GPA and volunteered locally with the Fairbanks Community Food Bank, donated time as a youth basketball coach and is a practiced artist who has also taken multiple cooking classes in high school.
He and the top-seeded Wolfpack fell short of advancing to the finals Friday after losing 59-52 to fifth-seeded South Anchorage.
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