Alaska

Map shows where Chinese ships spotted off U.S. coast

Published

2 years ago

July 12, 2024

Map shows where Chinese ships spotted off U.S. coast

The United States Coast Guard spotted four Chinese naval ships near an archipelago in Alaska over the weekend, at least the fourth encounter between the two sides near the “Last Frontier” state in recent years.

China’s military ships were sailing in the Bering Sea on Saturday and Sunday, north of the Amchitka Pass and the Amukta Pass of the Aleutian Islands, according to the Coast Guard’s statement, which did not identify the types of Chinese naval vessels it detected.

The islands lie between the south of Bering Sea and the north of Pacific Ocean. The Amchitka Pass is a 50-mile wide strait while the Amukta Pass is 43 miles wide. The Bering Sea is the doorway to the strategic Arctic region, separating Russia’s Far East and Alaska.

China’s vessels were sailing in international waters but within the U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ), the Coast Guard said. They responded to radio communications and said they were conducting freedom of navigation operations (FONOPs), according to the agency.

The U.S. EEZ extends 200 nautical miles offshore and is the largest in the world, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, spanning over 13,000 miles of coastline and containing 3.4 million square nautical miles of ocean. This zone extends beyond the seaward boundary of the 12-nautical mile territorial sea.

The 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea grants a coastal state the sovereign right to exploit natural resources within its EEZ, and it shall have due regard to the rights and duties of other states.

During a routine maritime patrol in the Bering Sea and Arctic region, the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Bertholf spotted and established radio contact with a Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy task force in international waters…

Ensign Bridget Boyle/U.S. Coast Guard

The U.S Navy routinely conducts FONOPs in waters near China, including in the contested South China Sea. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Tom Shugart, a defense analyst and former Navy submariner, noted differences between the two countries’ FONOPs.

“U.S. FONOPs are conducted to challenge excessive maritime claims made contrary to international law,” he wrote. But the U.S.—unlike China in the South China Sea—does not restrict operations within its EEZ.

U.S. Coast Guard cutter Kimball was tasked with shadowing the Chinese ships until they departed waters around the Aleutian Islands and transited into the North Pacific Ocean.

The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Healy, bottom, steams alongside the cutter Kimball, top, near Unimak Pass in Alaska on July 3. Healy, a polar icebreaker, and Kimball, a national security cutter, patrol the waters around…

U.S. Coast Guard/Chief Warrant Officer Brian Williams

A Coast Guard photo released by the U.S. Defense Department showed the Kimball operating alongside the polar icebreaker Healy on July 3 near the Unimak Pass in the Aleutian Islands.

Both ships “patrol the waters around Alaska to maintain maritime safety, security, and stability in the region,” the Coast Guard said.

The Kimball is a multi-mission national security cutter operating from its homeport in Honolulu, Hawaii, according to the Coast Guard. It has a displacement of 4,500 tons and a range of 13,000 nautical miles—and is equipped with automated weapons systems.

A Chinese military observer on X noted that, based on bulletins released by the Japanese Defense Ministry’s Joint Staff Office, four Chinese naval ships transited near northern Japan and entered the North Pacific Ocean from June 30 to July 1.

It was not immediately clear whether they were the same ships spotted by the Coast Guard in the Bering Sea.

China’s Defense Ministry did not immediately respond to a Newsweek email seeking comment.

It was not the first time China had sent an armada to the Alaska coast. In the third encounter last August, 11 Russian and Chinese ships sailed close to the Aleutian Islands, where they were monitored by four U.S. destroyers and maritime patrol aircraft.

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Alaska

Musician performs under the aurora in Nenana — without gloves, in 17 degrees

Published

5 hours ago

February 28, 2026

Press Room

Musician performs under the aurora in Nenana — without gloves, in 17 degrees

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – A musician with Alaska Native roots recorded an hour-long live set in Interior Alaska beneath the aurora.

Chastity Ashley, a drummer, vocalist and DJ who performs under the name Neon Pony, celebrated a year since she traveled to Nenana to record a live music set beneath the northern lights for her series Beats and Hidden Retreats.

Ashley, who has Indigenous roots in New Mexico, said she was drawn to Alaska in part because of the role drums play in Alaska Native culture. A handmade Alaskan hand drum, brought to her by a man from just outside Anchorage, was incorporated into the performance in February 2025.

Recording in the cold

The team spent eight days in Nenana waiting for the aurora to appear. Ashley said the lights did not come out until around 4 a.m., and she performed a continuous, uninterrupted hour-long set in 17-degree weather without gloves.

“It was freezing. I couldn’t wear gloves because I’m actually playing, yeah, hand drums and holding drumsticks. And there was ice underneath my feet,” Ashley said.

“So, I had to really utilize my balance and my willpower and my ability to just really immerse in the music and let go and make it about the celebration of what I was doing as opposed to worrying about all the other elements or what could go wrong.”

She said she performed in a leotard to allow full range of motion while drumming, DJing and singing.

Filming on Nenana tribal land

Ashley said she did not initially know the filming location was on indigenous land. After local authorities told her the decision was not theirs to make, she contacted the Nenana tribe directly for permission.

“I went into it kind of starting to tell them who I was and that I too was a part of a native background,” Ashley said. “And they just did not even care. They’re like, listen, we’re about to have a party for one of our friends here. Go and do what you like.”

Ashley said the tribe gave her full permission to film on the reservation, and that the aurora footage seen in the episode was captured there.

Seeing the aurora for the first time

Ashley said the Nenana performance marked her first time seeing the northern lights in person.

“It felt as if I were awake in a dream,” she said. “It really doesn’t seem real.”

She said she felt humbled and blessed to perform beneath the aurora and to celebrate its beauty and grandeur through her music.

“I feel incredibly humbled and blessed that not only did I get to take part in seeing something like that, but to play underneath it and celebrate its beauty and its grandeur.”

The Alaska episode is the second installment of Beats and Hidden Retreats, which is available on YouTube at @NeonPony. Ashley said two additional episodes are in production and she hopes to make it back up to Alaska in the future.

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Alaska

Over $150K worth of drugs seized from man in Juneau, police say

Published

17 hours ago

February 27, 2026

Press Room

Over 0K worth of drugs seized from man in Juneau, police say

JUNEAU, Alaska (KTUU) – An Alaska drug task force seized roughly $162,000 worth of controlled substances during an operation in Juneau Thursday, according to the Juneau Police Department.

Around 3 p.m. Thursday, investigators with the Southeast Alaska Cities Against Drugs (SEACAD) approached 50-year-old Juneau resident Jermiah Pond in the Nugget Mall parking lot while he was sitting in his car, according to JPD.

A probation search of the car revealed a container holding about 7.3 gross grams of a substance that tested presumptively positive for methamphetamine, as well as about 1.21 gross grams of a substance that tested presumptively positive for fentanyl.

As part of the investigation, investigators executed a search warrant at Pond’s residence, during which they found about 46.63 gross grams of ketamine, 293.56 gross grams of fentanyl, 25.84 gross grams of methamphetamine and 25.5 gross grams of MDMA.

In all, it amounted to just less than a pound of drugs worth $162,500.

Investigators also seized $102,640 in cash and multiple recreational vehicles believed to be associated with the investigation.

Pond was lodged on charges of second-degree misconduct involving a controlled substance, two counts of third-degree misconduct involving a controlled substance, five counts of fourth-degree misconduct involving a substance and an outstanding felony probation warrant.

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Alaska

Sand Point teen found 3 days after going missing in lake

Published

1 day ago

February 27, 2026

Press Room

Sand Point teen found 3 days after going missing in lake

SAND POINT, Alaska (KTUU) – A teenage boy who was last seen Monday when the canoe he was in tipped over has been found by a dive team in a lake near Sand Point, according to a person familiar with the situation.

Alaska’s News Source confirmed with the person, who is close to the search efforts, that the dive team found 15-year-old Kaipo Kaminanga deceased Thursday in Red Cove Lake, located a short drive from the town of Sand Point on the Aleutian Island chain.

Kaminanga was last seen canoeing with three other friends on Monday when the boat tipped over.

A search and rescue operation ensued shortly after.

Alaska Dive Search Rescue and Recovery Team posted on Facebook Thursday night that they were able to “locate and recover” Kaminanga at around 5 p.m. Thursday.

“We are glad we could bring closure to his family, friends and community,” the post said.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated when more details become available.

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