Jeffrey M. Widman Dies; Former Sitkan Was 57
Jeffrey Mark Widman passed away due to multiple health issues Dec. 22, 2024, at Providence Hospital in Anchorage. He was 57. He was born Nov. 13, 1967, in Tacoma, Washington, the son of Joe and Joanne Widman. He was raised from infancy on St. Paul Island, an island in the...
Committee Agrees to Plat Land in Lower Girdwood Considered for Housing Development
An Anchorage land bank has set its sights on more forested wetlands for subdivision development in Girdwood, this time along a bluff it calls "Orca Mountain View". The city's Heritage Land Bank, which owns most of the valley's undeveloped land, wants to plat three tracts totalling nearly 70 acres along Alyeska...
Strong showings at Lewis Crossover catapults Seawolves onto national rankings
After a pair of ninth-place finishes against a strong field at the Lewis Crossover in Romeoville, Ill., the UAA men’s and women’s cross country teams appear in the national rankings for the first time since 2019. Sophomore Alex Otto led the Seawolves, covering the 6-kilometer course in 21...
‘You couldn’t ask for better,’ a welcome home long over due for Honor Flight...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport (ANC) was filled with welcome signs and the sound of bagpipes on Saturday afternoon. Twenty-four Alaska veterans arrived home from a trip of a lifetime, an honor flight to Washington D.C. “When we heard the bagpipes, I went, ‘Wow,’ I can’t...
In photos: Mass evacuation of Kipnuk and Kwigillingok residents begins from western Alaska
Residents of Kipnuk and Kwigillingok began evacuating en masse on Wednesday, flying in military aircraft from their western Alaska communities which were devastated by ex-Typhoon Halong. On Wednesday evening, the first 300 evacuees embarked on a C-17 military transport plane from Bethel to make the one-hour journey...
The annual Natives Got Talent is a time to celebrate, heal and just have...
Hazel Schwantes was moments from stepping onstage Monday night, but she didn’t want to talk about it. She felt a little nervous. She was about to perform with her mom, Maria Dosal, who said they’ve been singing together since Hazel was two. “Sometimes she will take the lead...
Indigenous Peoples’ Day marked in Anchorage with festivities and thoughts about storm victims
The Lepquinm Gumilgit Gagoadim Tsimshian dance group performs at Alaska Pacific University's Indigenous Peoples' Day celebration on Oct. 13, 2025. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon) In Alaska, the second Monday of October is designated to recognize the state’s Indigenous people and their cultures. The Alaska...
Large-scale evacuations underway from storm-battered Western Alaska villages
Hundreds of people were being evacuated from the Western Alaska village of Kipnuk Wednesday after residents were told to pack a single bag and leave the community, one of the hardest hit by a catastrophic storm that deluged swaths of the Yukon-Kuskokwim region over the weekend. The storm left housing...
Climate expert highlights vulnerability of Yukon-Kuskokwim region after Ex-Typhoon Halong
YUKON-KUSKOKWIM DELTA, Alaska (KTUU) - While strong storms are typical for the Bering Sea during fall months, experts say ex-Typhoon Halong was different because its path caused a massive storm surge that highlighted growing vulnerabilities in Alaska’s coastal communities. Climate specialist Rick Thoman with the...
‘One of the largest airlifts of Alaskans in history’: Dunleavy speaks on Halong recovery
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy said Thursday night that the airlift of residents displaced by Typhoon Halong could become one of the largest emergency evacuations in state history, as hundreds of evacuees arrived in Anchorage from flood-stricken Western Alaska. Speaking from the Alaska Airlines...
